Bitter

• email this story
• read comments (54)
• post a comment
• 
  
  

I've been listening to the media chattering class kvetch all day about Obama's "working-class people are bitter" remarks. Half the time I love this country, half the time the way people think makes me ashamed and want to live elsewhere. The denial and stupidity levels in this country are staggering, breathtaking. The Clintoners are hounds from hell. If anything, Obama was putting it mildly, gently. And what he was doing was essentially saying the bitter are justified.

Obama is not only definitely going to win the Democratic nomination, but McCain is going to lose the November election. The reasons are simple, clear-cut, unavoidable and unsellable: (a) Bush III, (b) doesn't know from economics, and (c) senior moments.

comment #1

Rosebudsthesled says ...

I hope to god you're right, Jeff. Nothing in this world would make me happier than an Obama presidency.

comment #2

Dsizzle says ...

Despite all the nonsense up to now, I probably would have swallowed my annoyance and voted for Hillary in November if she somehow managed to win the nomination. But after the crap she's pulling this weekend re: Obama's TOTALLY CORRECT AND REASONABLE STATEMENTS, there is no way in hell I would ever pull the lever for her, even if she were running against a third Bush term. And I suspect I'm not alone in this.

comment #3

Walter Sobchak says ...

I just turned on the television and found that CNN, FOX, MSNBC and CNBC have gone completely off the air. There is no more need, apparently, to discuss the upcoming election. It is over. It has been decided. Obama will win the presidency. Jeffrey Wells from the movie website "Hollywood Elsewhere" has declared a winner. Go home everyone.

comment #4

medicineman151 says ...

Heaven forbid someone speaks the truth in this country. Obama is correct. If you see what is happening, they are going to try to hit him the way they did Gore...that he is too smart and out of touch with the common folk. That gave us Bush, but people never learn their lessons. It is simply humorous that someone who's family cleared over $100million over the last few years will attack him for being out of touch with the middle class. Then again, Bush was the definition of the silver spoon kid. I love and hate this place so much sometimes, I feel I made need therapy.

comment #5

christian says ...

No, Americans are not bitter about 4 dollar a gallon gasoline. They look upon it as their choice in a vibrant and exciting new economy, where no one is hampered by the market shackles. And they aren't bitter about a war costing lives and trillions. And...

OBEY.

comment #6

redmond says ...

NEWSFLASH: HIllary Clinton loves guns. LOVES THEM! Always has since a little girl when Pa Rodham took her duck hunting:

http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2008/04/12/clinton-touts-her-experience-with-guns/

The best part is watching Hillary back-pedal when a woman whose son was killed by a misplaced gun asks Hillary about gun control. Dance, puppet, dance!

comment #7

D.Z. says ...

redmond: "Clinton touted her husband's record on gun control during his administration,"

Allowing the gun show loophole which led to Columbine to happen and then blaming it on R-rated movies certainly showed control on his part.

Anyway, her inconsistent message on violence in general isn't really a surprise, since she blames GTA for violence in our society while voting for a war.

comment #8

bb says ...

Not only are you wrong Jeff, but barring some unforeseen development, IF obama gets the nomination, he will not only lose but will do so in a landslide.

The Dems always manage to let the wingnuts take over now and again, get slapped down in an election and then rebuild back to the center. This is going to be that kind of year.

Wishing doesn't make it so.

comment #9

Mgmax says ...

Saying it in April doesn't make it so in November. That's the only thing any of us can say with assurance, bb.

I'll be damned if I know what's going to happen. If I had to hazard a guess, it's that the Obama Faith-Healing Tour will take some serious lumps right out of the gate, once it has to talk to the entire populace and not just the left half of the left half. I wouldn't be surprised by a 15-point McCain lead in July -- even as the GOP stands likely to lose 20 or 30 House seats. But Obama's smart and adaptable, and may well find a mojo that works. Still, any scenario from a McCain landslide to an Obama landslide is plausible at this point.

comment #10

Mgmax says ...

If Hillary had any experience with guns Bill'd be planted in Arkansas soil.

comment #11

dangovich says ...

Just when you think this nation's political discourse can't get any more pathetic, something else comes along to prove you wrong.

God forbid we dwell on substantive issues.

comment #12

D.Z. says ...

dangovich: On that note, the plot thickens for Heath Ledger's death. http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080412/ap_en_ce/heath_ledger_video_lawsuit_14

comment #13

MovieBob says ...

Forget what he did or didn't "mean," that's not important. What you should take away from this is that he was dumb (or naive) enough to say it out loud in the first place. It's the move of a man who hasn't been in politics long enough.

It's the same as the Rev. Wright thing: It doesn't matter if you bought the "conversation on race" speech - it was the wrong speech. All he had to do was get out there and placate the people who were hacked-off, and he didn't do it. And yeah, it's admirable that he took the "high-road" and talked to the voting public like grownups... but the problem is that they AREN'T grownups. Most of the people voting on either side are morons. They can barely put two and two together, and he's out there asking them to solve string equations with him.

I can't decide if Obama is A.) too green to know what he's doing or B.) to much of a naive idealist to do the cynical (read: correct) thing, but both answers mean the same thing: He's not a fighter, and he can't do the job he's applying for.

comment #14

K. Bowen says ...

Obama is a very inexperienced candidate who is going to keep making mistakes. He is just handing his opponents ammunition.

comment #15

Nate West says ...

"... but the problem is that they AREN'T grownups. Most of the people voting on either side are morons."

Barack, it's probably a mistake for you to be posting this insight in public.

comment #16

Marcello says ...

I can't believe with ALL the mistakes Clinton and McCain have made anyone on here would be fool enough to say Obama is making mistakes out of inexperience. With the kind of attention these candidates get, mistake are inevitable. They are also, for the most part, irrelevant blips in the media's narrative. Did Bill Clinton not make mistakes when he ran in '92? It was one controversy after another.

In the end, what matters is the candidate's ability to connect with voters, and the campaign's success at creating a coherent message. These are areas where Obama has excelled, and Hillary and McCain (they may as well be on the same ticket at this point!) have failed miserably.

comment #17

IndyNick says ...

Thank you, MovieBob and K. Bowen!

You know. As a Hillary supporter, I am trying to find ways to get behind Obama, if/when he gets the nomination, but he continues to make rookie mistakes like this, and it makes me even more discouraged for his chances in November.

Sure, the fact that small towns are bitter (I grew up in one, so I know), is, indeed that...a fact. Well,s when was the last time you actually set foot in a small town, let alone have any clue what its like. I saw my hometown become a low/wage migrant stronghold because the meat processing plant was bought by IBP. However, I signed the petition for IBP to move in, because if that plant had failed, then it would have been the death of the town. Anyway, there is one thing for a major political candidate to know this fact, but it is entirely something else for said candidate to actually SPEAK it to an audience in San Fransisco, no less. Seriously? These small towns have a mistrust for Liberals in the first place...and to voice this in that audience, well, it is a big deal. There were "bitter" protesters at Obama's speech in Muncie, IN, which is just a shocking development.

He's screwing the pooch here. It's sad. He's just showing that he's not ready for this level of politics. It just goes back to my thought that he needed to baste for a few more years in the Senate, and it has absolutely nothing to do with his "waiting his turn." Time and again, he proves himself to be absolute novice, and the time for a novice in the White House is OVER!

comment #18

Rod32303 says ...

I have been old enough to vote since Ronald Regan's 1984 run. I have seen nothing but "experience" in our White House. The only time where there was relatively less experience was when Bill Clinton ran in 1992, and for most of his presidency, we were much better off than we are now. People will say that we benefited from George Bush senior's plans - maybe for the first couple year(s), but not all 8.

Fuck the "experience" mode. The "experience" mode got us where we are right now. Which is not by any means great. Not ready for what level of politics? Not ready to continue to run the show by polls and sound bites and status quo bullshit? I'll take my chances on SOME-fucking thing new.

Anything is really better than this current bullshit. John McCain, with all due major respect, is SO Washington it's not worth discussing. And Senator Clinton, whom I thought a couple months ago would at least come with a different...perspective...more of the same.

This man Obama ain't perfect. Not flawless in the least. And makes mistakes all the time.

You know, like most of US. But for me - for ME, he's the real deal, and I hope he whoops the shit out of all the naysayers and all the status quo.

comment #19

musealien says ...

Amazing how when Geraldine Ferraro spoke the truth a few weeks ago Obama-world went crazy.

Imagine if Hillary had said what Obama just said? She'd be accused of everything from killing JFK to faking the moon landings. But because Obama says it, it's fine.

And Wells, you talk about Bush III? Obama is Bush III - someone with no experience, little knowledge and no business sitting in the Oval Office.

comment #20

Bob Violence says ...

Apparently voters don't like being told their lifestyles are informed by vengeful ignorance and not much else. Shock, horror! It would've been trivial to finesse the comments by emphasizing how politicians and assorted hucksters on both sides of the fence use these issues as a means of deflection; the GOP exploits this brilliantly and it's admirable if a Dem candidate wants to address it head-on, but I guess it's simpler to say that small-town folks are natural-born bigots. If this is how liberalism's shining hope understands the problem (suffice to say that Hillary barely even sees it), we may as well take off and nuke the entire Democratic Party from orbit.

comment #21

D.Z. says ...

Bob: "What you should take away from this is that he was dumb (or naive) enough to say it out loud in the first place. It's the move of a man who hasn't been in politics long enough."

Yeah, an experienced politician would do something intelligent like ask people, "Is your children learning?"

"It's the same as the Rev. Wright thing: It doesn't matter if you bought the "conversation on race" speech - it was the wrong speech. All he had to do was get out there and placate the people who were hacked-off, and he didn't do it."

If he didn't do it, then why did Hillary lose her edge in Pennsylvania?

Bowen: "Obama is a very inexperienced candidate who is going to keep making mistakes."

Yes, he should tout his foreign policy experience with a fake story involving dodging gunfire in a war zone.

Indy: "As a Hillary supporter, I am trying to find ways to get behind Obama, if/when he gets the nomination, but he continues to make rookie mistakes like this,"

I find it hard for you to be supporting someone who can't even get a new health care policy passed during a period of a Democratic majority, and then argue that Obama's the rookie...

"I saw my hometown become a low/wage migrant stronghold because the meat processing plant was bought by IBP. However, I signed the petition for IBP to move in, because if that plant had failed, then it would have been the death of the town."

And I'm sure your town thanks you for your tough choice, but making it less bearable to live there isn't exactly saving it, just prolonging its end.

"...but it is entirely something else for said candidate to actually SPEAK it to an audience in San Fransisco, no less. Seriously? These small towns have a mistrust for Liberals in the first place...and to voice this in that audience, well, it is a big deal."

If they don't trust liberals, then why would they bother listening to Obama in the first place?

"It just goes back to my thought that he needed to baste for a few more years in the Senate, and it has absolutely nothing to do with his "waiting his turn." Time and again, he proves himself to be absolute novice, and the time for a novice in the White House is OVER!"

Except when the novice votes for an unpopular war, and has only been in the Senate a couple years more than Obama...

muse: "Amazing how when Geraldine Ferraro spoke the truth a few weeks ago Obama-world went crazy. Imagine if Hillary had said what Obama just said?"

She kind of did when she criticized the voters who helped Obama win in the Mid-West...

"And Wells, you talk about Bush III? Obama is Bush III - someone with no experience, little knowledge and no business sitting in the Oval Office."

He has little knowledge and experience and yet he went to Harvard and, unlike Bush, was actually successful before entering politics. And it's not really up to you alone to decide whether he's fit for the Presidency.

comment #22

dre says ...

If Obama's fault here is in speaking the truth, whoops!!! Rookie mistake!

For the Clintonites that are harping over Obama's gigantic volume of rookie mistakes (which I seem to have misplaced), I wonder how, despite these many mystery mistakes, Obama has gone from a candidate without a chance in the world to the frontrunner and how Clinton, after being the clear-cut candidate faltered so badly, despite her MASSIVE amount of experience?

Somehow Clinton's much longer laundry list of mistakes (Bill-gate in SC, the 3am ad that backfired, the naivete on Obama's religious affiliation which backfired on her, her Bosnia trip gaffe ... too name a few) ... the mistakes of an "experienced" candidate are okay. Because its okay if an experienced candidate makes mistakes, even if they make more mistakes than an inexperienced one. What matters is that Obama is a rookie, a breath of fresh air, honest, intelligent .... AND HE MUST BE DESTROYED

comment #23

Mgmax says ...

You go into these upscale neighborhoods in New York and Chicago and San Francisco and, like all the big cities, the power parents are working at their law firms and hedge funds until 10 o'clock every night and the kids are being raised by a Latina nanny...And they lived like this through the Clinton Administration, and the Bush Administration, and each successive administration has said that somehow these communities are gonna start living balanced lives and they have not. And it's not surprising then they get bitter, they cling to leftwing politics or yoga or conspicuous consumption or vacations in Europe or art collecting as a way to add that missing spiritual dimension and connection with their families to their lives.

comment #24

Rod32303 says ...

Yoga's pretty fucking awesome, actually.

comment #25

MattyCurtis says ...

Hounds from hell? Such hyperbole makes it difficult to take the more substantive analysis seriously.

As to Obama's gaffe, a good politician never condescends, even when common sense and reality would seem to justify it. One shouldn't pander either (pointing finger at Clinton) although there's effectively no penalty for violating that rule in today's political environment.

comment #26

Mgmax says ...

"Yoga's pretty fucking awesome, actually."

So's hunting. Well, not to me, but I'm not going to judge others' hobbies.

"As to Obama's gaffe, a good politician never condescends"

Or in Hillary's case, never does anything but, so the level of condescension isn't revealed by the contrast.

comment #27

JackeyAces says ...

Mgmax thanks for saving me the trouble of having to write a similar post. But your forgetting what an act of pandering cowardice it was for B. Hussein to deliver his premeditated hate crime in front of a SF crowd. If next Pres. McCain delivered a similar tirade on welfare queens in front Bob Jones University all the race pimps would have their lil pink panties in a bunch screaming racism like the worthless banshees they are.

comment #28

JackeyAces says ...

Hillary would get creamed if she gets the nomination. First she would have to pull some hard core power play, not by popular vote or some other democratic measure. This would create a 1968 like chasm within the party.

Hillary's line of bull about experience she can get away with running against Obama but against McCain she would seem like a nut case.

Obama has a chance but Hillary has none

comment #29

George Prager says ...

"I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU FUCKING NEGATIVE-NANCY NAYSAYERS.

Get ready, bitches, cuz this isn't going to be pretty.

And my IRONY MODE is set to MOTHERF*****G OFF, because this one is for real.

Hillary Clinton is my IDOL.

Has been for 35 years. The lady is the GREATEST POLITICIAN of the last 35 years, a LEGEND on par with REAGAN, JFK, FDR, RFK you name it.

BOW BEFORE Hillary. BOW!!!!!!

How many BILLIONS of fucking dollars did this woman make for her party? How many WINNING f*****g elections? How much f******g JOY did she bring to the MASSES AROUND THE GLOBE WITH HER SPEECHES?

What have any of us accomplished? Eating a bowl of f******g cereal? Doing some niche bullshit? This is a SENATOR who has BROUGHT THE WORLD TOGETHER, and you're all sounding off alarms like a delagate count of 1506 is some walk of shame level disgrace.

F**K THAT.

The woman is the GREATEST POLTICIAN of our age. The woman's HAIR is INCREDIBLE and if you don't seek to style your WACK-ASS COIF after Hillary Clinton in your day to day life, you are the lesser woman for it.

Hillary IS QUEEN. ALL HAIL. And Penn's no fucking slouch. That commercial looked AWESOME. Gee, real sorry a bunch of gossip-mongering, pissy, petty-ass BITCHES have to snipe at a SENATOR WHO'S SUPERIOR TO THEM ON EVERY LEVEL OF SUCCESS IN THE WORLD, taking cheap shots to gratify their own bullshit sense of insecurity and creating a story WHERE THERE IS NONE. (Not Wells specifically, just this tide of phony-ass backlash dating back to '92 on the subject of Hillary.)

HILLARY WILL OWN YOUR ASS. EVERYTHING HILLARY EVER HAS DONE AND EVER WILL DONE, with the exceptions of maybe the IRAQ WAR VOTE, the `93 HEALTH CARE REFORM BILL, and WHITEWATER, are LIFE-CHANGING PAENS TO THE POWER OF POSITIVE THINKING.

RECOGNIZE."

comment #30

frankbooth says ...

George, maybe you could parody someone else for awhile.

Like IO with his. Weirdly random use. Of periods.

comment #31

dangovich says ...

But your forgetting what an act of pandering cowardice it was for B. Hussein to deliver his premeditated hate crime in front of a SF crowd.

Look everyone! Barack Obama's middle name is Hussein! Holy crap. Hussein! As in, Saddam Hussein. As in...aye-rabs. With a middle name like that, he'd probably go and turn us into an Islamic fundamentalist state. Jeez, and I was almost going to vote for him. Thanks Jackey for alerting me to this.

comment #32

christian says ...

And incredibly, JackeyAces actually reverts to the paranoid bigoted fear-mongering that the GOP denies exists in their salt of the earth party.

comment #33

JackeyAces says ...

dangovich:

I only did it because Wells called Sen McCain, Bush III. You only seem have problems with name calling when it doesn't go your way. Stick your phony hypocritical calls for more "civility" up your ass.

comment #34

George Prager says ...

That's rich. JackeyAces whines about "hate crime" and then calls Barack Obama "B. Hussein". Someone calls him on his shit and he's back with more whining. WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!!

P.S. McCain's full name is John Sidney McCain III. If Wells had called him that, you would have a point about "name-calling". Calling him "Bush III" is not name calling; it's editorializing.

comment #35

BurmaShave says ...

Prager what about a list of all the directors who've worked with Hillary?

comment #36

JackeyAces says ...

It is a hate crime that's just the facts. George Prager that whaa sound is that little pea brain of yours rattling round that thick skull yours after the THE TRUTH just went upside your head!!!

christian

Thank you for conceding B. Hussein is a paranoid bigoted fear-mongering a-hole. See what I did was called an analogy. I took a real factual B. Hussein statement and proposed if Sen McCain had made a similar equally hateful but pretend or fake statement. Then proffered what the likely reaction would be.

Bush III is naming calling. More to the point its inaccurate name calling. McCain like him or dislike is a very different from Bush. Calling B Hussein, B Hussein is not name calling. IT IS HIS NAME any problems go cry to Mama B Hussein

comment #37

George Prager says ...

Bush III is naming calling. I think we can all agree on that. And that JackeyAces is an ugly, dumb motherfucker; one of the ugliest and dumbest that we've seen on these boards is a while.

comment #38

JackeyAces says ...

George, you wish you were me. You'd have to get an extreme makeover & win the lottery to begin to approximate me.

I guarantee I out earn you & have achieved a superior level
education

Don't be bitter just because your mama got pregnant during anal sex & that's why you got shit for brains

comment #39

George Prager says ...

JackeyAces says ...

corey3rd: your comment was the most cogent & insightful

DZ: Your are the poster child for women who get pregnant from anal sex because you have shit for brains!

Posted by JackeyAces [TypeKey Profile Page] at December 22, 2007 06:14 PM

If that's your A material, JackeyAces, then I feel sorry for you. Actually, I don't feel sorry for you. And something about your writing style tells me that English is your second language.

comment #40

George Prager says ...

PA Man Reacts to Obama's Comments
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N4xPuDgKO04

comment #41

Chicago48 says ...

Hillary is grasping at straws. This is a bunch of nothing.

comment #42

MattyCurtis says ...

Calling McCain "Bush III" is a dumbed-down and somewhat too easy metaphor that embodies some of the policy arguments democrats have against him. Of course it's also a technique to smear him with Bush's shit. Not a big fan of it, but it's a pretty established and ho hum technique whenever someone from a two-termer's party is running (usually the vice president). It's simply saying "X is more of the same". You don't agree with it, fine, whatever.

On the other hand, to call Barak Obama "B. Hussein" is to play on racist and xenophobic fears, and to support those far rightwing asshole nutcases who've successfully created a quiet undercurrent of "maybe he really is a muslim" thinking in some quarters of a country. It's cheap, sleazy and rotten. Do you feel good doing it?

comment #43

JackeyAces says ...

Georgie

Good to know you hang on my every syllable. How pathetic it is that you spend the time looking that shit up. Like using a joke twice several months apart is some kind of crime. Both times it was fitting and accurate. Most comedians make living do nearly the same act all their lives.

Your in no position to talk. Your little worthless mind can't come up with anything better than dumb & ugly and you used it twice in the SAME post moron.

comment #44

lionsfan says ...

Jeff, you'll never be a poitical pundit. Why you (and your legions of fans) keep on trying is beyond me. Your attempts at political commentary aren't even on the level of Frank Rich (which is bad enough), but more like leftover frothing from the Huffington Post.

I hope you enjoy the coming McCain Presidency even half as much as I will.

comment #45

MattyCurtis says ...

Hey JackyAces, what about what I had to say. It was directed squarely at you. Do you have a response that doesn't involve calling me some names?

comment #46

christian says ...

"I hope you enjoy the coming McCain Presidency even half as much as I will."

I'm assuming you're enlisting? Please, shame us all.

comment #47

D.Z. says ...

Matt: Well, it's hard not to call McCain a Bush III, when he pretty much agrees with everything Bush has done.

comment #48

D.Z. says ...

Mgmax: "So's hunting."

It didn't seem awesome for that guy who got shot by Dick Cheney...

Jackey: "Thank you for conceding B. Hussein is a paranoid bigoted fear-mongering a-hole."

He should go after black football players and a black basketball team on the radio.

"Bush III is naming calling. More to the point its inaccurate name calling. McCain like him or dislike is a very different from Bush."

Yes, he wants to be in Iraq twice as long as Bush.

comment #49

Herpesdating says ...

Obama is very great. Many users on our herpes dating site know that he offers many helps to the girls who can't afford the basic drugs

comment #50

George Prager says ...

Fascinating post, JackAsses. I wonder what a linguist would make of it. It shows that even if you know how to speak and write a language, you still have a long way to go. Nuance and tone are important. Any 12 year-old American boy would read your "joke" and pronounce it as lame. But you are from another culture--probably heard the insult at the Physics club's pizza party--it stuck with you and now you are regurgitating it on a regular basis as if you had made it up yourself and you are ready to pee in your pants from its hilarious impact.

So...anyway...good luck with the arranged marriage. You have a very bad personality, so it's probably the wise move.

comment #51

mizerock says ...

It's not nearly as bad as this statement, but for some reason I was reminded of it. It's so hard to predict in advance which off-the-cuff remark will rile up some faux-outrage with the media. With Kerry, the answer seemed to be "all of them". Oh, and with Kerry, it wasn't President Clinton sending press releases to TV stations to cue them to be outraged.

****

Kerry, who was speaking to a group of students, warned them that those who don't study hard or do well in school could "get stuck in Iraq."

http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2006/10/31/9546.aspx

comment #52

christian says ...

Talk about Idicocracy. Kerry was clearly stating that education leads to not making mistakes like invading Iraq. Period. How pathetic it was to watch the anti-intellectual nabobs on the right spin that as an insult to soldiers and non-students. If Americans buy into this, they deserve what they get from leaders.

comment #53

Mgmax says ...

Yeah right, because in Kerry's youth there was NO connection between staying in school and not getting drafted.

comment #54

christian says ...

Except unlike Bush Cheney and most GOP warriors, Kerry enlisted to fight. And that's not what he was refering to, Mgmax. You know that.

Post a Comment