Truespeak

As the Republican Convention revs up, there are a few things to keep in mind. Somewhat of a viewer's guide, if you will, for those of us who know the truth.

VIEWER TIP #1
DON'T BELIEVE EVERYTHING YOU HEAR
As any intelligent person knows, numbers can be manipulated. If you don't have all the information, numbers can be made to say whatever you like. For instance, the viewer is bound to hear about this administration's record on job creation. They will gladly tell you that they have created over one million jobs in the last year; but what they won't say is that they are still 1.8 million jobs short of breaking even over the last four years. They will tell you that their tax breaks have benefited everyone and stimulated the economy; but they won't tell you that the middle class is now responsible for the largest portion of the tax burden. They will tell you that we are "turning the corner" and moving forward with the economy; but they will fail to mention that 1.3 million more people have slid into poverty in the past year. Although some of these statements contain a small shred of truth, none of them tell the whole story and that's the way the Republicans like it.

VIEWER TIP #2
DON'T BELIEVE EVERYTHING YOU SEE
What you see is not necessarily what you get. Over the next four days, you will see a number of familiar faces: John McCain, Rudy Giuliani, Arnold Schwarzenegger. None of these men represent the true Republican party. As the Republicans repeatedly accused the Democratic Convention of hiding its true liberal face, the Republicans are hiding their true conservative face. In fact, the facade they're presenting for the public disagrees with the Bush administration on a number of key issues. Issues like gay rights and abortion in particular. I find it interesting that the people the Republicans have chosen to represent them are closer in ideology to the Democrats than they are to their own party. This administration of compassionate conservatism doesn't feel comfortable enough in its own skin so they hide behind the moderates in their party. They don't want the coveted swing voter to know how far to the right they really are.

VIEWER TIP #3
JOHN MCCAIN IS A WHORE
I know that a lot of people view John McCain as a hero, and in terms of his military service, he is just that. But after what he was subjected to by the Bush campaign in 2000, his willingness to support the President for reelection makes him no better than a cheap whore who blows her pimp for free to get the good tricks. As I said in an earlier post:

McCain is allowing himself and his popularity to be used by the Bush administration for their own gain while John Kerry, his friend and fellow Vietnam vet, is being smeared by the same people who smeared him. To me this is like professing your love for a woman who screws your friends when you’re not around.

Where is that commendable John McCain who is willing to cross party lines and stand up for what he believes in? Where is his integrity? Where’s that honesty? It’s disheartening to see him allowing himself to be used like this.

VIEWER TIP #4
JOHN KERRY IS A HERO
Although they would have you believe otherwise, John Kerry is a true hero. He volunteered to be put in harm's way when he could have just as easily chosen the easy route our president and vice president did. He risked his own life leading others in a war that he later opposed because he felt that it was his duty to the country. He earned commendations for his bravery and leadership and decorations for his sacrifice. Despite what others would have you believe, John Kerry earned every award he received. His military records have verified that. After he returned from his service, he took a position that placed him at odds with many of his fellow soldiers. He didn't do this because he wanted to be on television, he didn't do this because he didn't honor his fellow soldiers service; he did this because he believed that people should know the truth. He once again put himself in harm's way, taking the lead in an antiwar stance to correct the injustices and atrocities that were taking place in Vietnam despite the backlash that he surely knew would come.

VIEWER TIP #5
WE ARE NOT SAFE
Even though the Republicans would like you to believe that they are protecting you from harm, they are not. Billions of dollars have been wasted on a war that has nothing to do with our safety. As you watch the convention you are likely to hear about how safe we are, but going back to an earlier post:

President Bush has repeatedly called Iraq a "central front in the war on terror." I disagree. In my opinion, the central front in the war on terror is right here in America. Instead of spending $100 billion in Iraq to root out a WMD program that was virtually nonexistent and wasn't threatening anyone, why not spend that money here in America to help secure our borders, ports, nuclear facilities, water facilities, and airlines? 95% of all cargo that comes into our country's seaports goes unchecked. Securing our border with Mexico has been underfunded for years. We've been told repeatedly about the dangers of an attack on our nuclear power plants or about the ramifications of a chemical/biological attack on our nation's water supply yet most are unguarded. And it goes without saying that we are all aware of the dangers posed by hijacked airplanes, yet we are unable to fully staff each airport with qualified screeners and each airplane with an air marshall. Couldn't that $100 billion be used here at home to correct these issues?

It is my belief that this war has actually left us less safe than we have ever been by diverting our money, our military, and our attention away from the true risks. We abandoned the search for the true enemy to go after a man that posed no threat to us whatsoever.

VIEWER TIP #6
DON'T BELIEVE THE PUNDITS
Many of today's conservative pundits have spent a great deal of time talking about the upcoming election. However, instead of telling us about the great things George W. Bush will do for us, they have devoted more time to spreading lies and distortions about John Kerry. For example, I offer this editorial by Diana West of the Washington Times:

Whether it's a silly vow of insta-action belied by his behavior, a Christmas in Cambodia that wasn't really Christmas and likely wasn't Cambodia, widely, seriously contested military claims of both heroics and atrocities, or talk of a "secret" plan to save Iraq, the man increasingly sounds like he is all bluster.
    Mr. Kerry's Brahmin braggadocio on the "Goat" minutes may seem to be a small thing, hardly a matter on which presidential elections turn. But in a campaign based solely on the candidate's "biography," it is one more telling detail in an evolving character study that the Kerry campaign, given the probing charges raised by Swift Boat Veterans for Truth and the pressing, new journalism of the blogosphere, is no longer sole author of.
    As even Democrats admit, there is little in the Kerry resume to boost a wartime presidency: two dovish Senate decades; a stint as a leading antiwar protester instrumental in creating the iconic image of Vietnam vet-as-babykiller; an abbreviated tour in Vietnam that netted a considerable and, lately, controversial, collection of medals; and a presidential campaign. This, of course, explains why Mr. Kerry has strategically reconfigured his biography so that those four months in Vietnam 35 years ago appear, climactically, precede his White House run today.

Not only does she perpetuate the discredited claims of the Swiftboat Vets, but she claims that Kerry's campaign is based solely on his "biography." I find this statement to be utterly preposterous. For starters, John Kerry has offered an often ignored plan for the future. That is the basis for his campaign, his biography is merely prelude. Second of all, they are supporting a man whose own "biography" has been kept hidden from the general public. If you don't believe me, try asking him a question about the "lost years." And as long as we're on the subject of living in the past, it's no secret that the Bush campaign is running on the President's few minutes of glory atop the rubble on September 14, 2001. It's too bad we haven't fulfilled the promises that he made to us that day. But that's just nitpicking, isn't it.

VIEWER TIP #7
THE REPUBLICANS ARE SCARED
The Republicans will put on a brave face and their talking heads will brandish the latest poll numbers that show them leading nationwide, but they are scared. Why? Because they have nothing to run on besides those few minutes atop the rubble after September 11 and people know it. The polls they are citing are small. They have small sample numbers, a larger margin of error, and are therefore less reliable. According to the latest Zogby/Williams poll a majority of people support John Kerry.

Nationally, a large Zogby/Williams poll of 20,900 voters found Kerry leads Bush by 50.8 percent to 46.7 percent among likely voters, with only 2.4 percent undecided or so soft in their support of either candidate that they could easily change. That survey had an error margin of plus or minus less than 1 percentage point.

The key reason for the unhappiness with Bush is the Iraq war; 46.6 percent list Iraq as Bush's biggest failure.

"I supported the war," said Allyson Dyar, 49, a computer installer in Portland, Ore., who voted for Bush in 2000 but now is undecided. "But then they didn't find any weapons of mass destruction . . . The war right now is not setting well with me."

Theresa Han-Markey, 42, of Ann Arbor said she voted for Bush in 2000. Now she's looking for a good reason to vote against him.

This is why they are spending more time talking about John Kerry than their own candidate. They are scared and I believe they have good reason to be.

So don't fret, don't worry, and remember: Don't believe it.