Sarah Palin & Katie Couric

No matter how hard I try to stay focused on fair and objective journalism, I often get accused of being more conservative than liberal. I try my best to hear both sides of the political spectrum because I don’t believe that either side of the political view is necessarily always correct. I believe that in most cases, both sides have very different but valid points on most issues. The biggest flaw that I see is how emotional people get when their view or political belief is challenged. It’s human nature to defend one’s thoughts and beliefs, but people today take it so far that they often close their minds to other possibilities.

My post with Joe Biden and Katie Couric’s interview was undoubtedly not one of Biden’s best moments in front of the camera. Therefore, I felt it was necessary to show one of Sarah Palin’s less than perfect moments, which happens to be with the same reporter. In this video Palin clearly fails to prove that she’s confident in tackling the big issue of the Wall Street bailouts.

About a minute into this video, Couric asks Palin if she supports the $700 billion bailout. Instead of answering, she begins to ramble on about how “ill” she is about the position America is in, while never coming close to a yes or no. This interview clearly leaves voters questioning her ability to tackle the big issues concerning America. Like I said from the beginning, this should be an interesting race to watch.

A Waste-Debate In 08

Did you happen to miss the first presidential debate last night? Well not to worry, because those of us who were able to stay awake are still waiting for someone to take a stand on issues we already know we’re facing.  Last night McCain and Obama met for their first presidential debate of this political season to tackle the issues of financial crisis, taxes, spending and the wars in the Middle East. The discussion topic was supposed to be foreign policy, but due to the recent Wall Street meltdown, the central topic shifted to the negotiations over a federal bailout. I figured that given the importance of this issue, at least one of the candidates would take this opportunity to present something significant for the voters to consider for the election. I’m quickly learning that as a voter, expectations are a symptom of disappointment.

After the two candidates went back and forth stressing their strengths and opponents weaknesses, the question was asked regarding where each candidate stood on the proposed $700 billion bailout for Wall Street. Unfortunately, no matter how much either candidate’s mouth moved, neither one of them said anything that resembled a commitment of supporting specific strategies or tactics regarding the bailout. It seems that the only thing either of them could substantially say, which they both agreed on, was that congress needed to take action. I hope that the next debate will provide me with something remotely important to consider come November.

Joe Biden & Katie Couric Interview

Two Days ago, I received a phone call from a friend of mine in Chicago. My friend is a wholehearted democrat, who has some rather strong opinions against Sarah Palin. He feels very strongly that she is not fit to be the next vice president of the United States because of his own world views and personal beliefs.

After speaking with him, I started to wonder what Joe Biden has been up to. All this talk about the Republican vice presidential candidate, I thought it would be a good idea to compare and contrast the man Palin is running against. It’s been about a month now since Biden claimed Hilary Clinton might be a better fit than himself for vice president, and I really haven’t heard anything new – until now.

Watch this interview with Biden and Katie Couric. About 30 seconds into this interview clip, listen carefully to how Biden explains leaders instill confidence in others and how he describes the stock market crash of 1929.

Did you catch that? According to Biden, Franklin Roosevelt was the president when the stock market crashed in 1929. Now I’m no famous historian, but wasn’t Herbert Hoover the president in 1929? Didn’t Franklin Roosevelt become president in 1933? I’m sorry to say Biden, but to make matters worse the television wasn’t even commercialized in America until the 1940’s.

I don’t know about you, but this definitely rattles my confidence that Joe Biden is fit to be the next vice president of the United States. Not to mention if Palin made this mistake, the political world would have a field day exploiting this interview. Yet again, more evidence that the the majority of journalism in America is unethical, bias, and down right embarrassing.

Ike Brings About More Than Just Destruction…

I really have no words for this. Just watch…

I’m (Obama/McCain) And I Approve This Message

This advertisement is obviously misleading because it does not tell the whole truth. McCain doesn’t choose to not write emails -he physically can’t. An old injury from his five year stay as a P.O.W. prevents his ability to type.

Why do we even air this type of propaganda? On both sides of this election, I honestly cannot stand these misleading, out of context, worthless, half truths of promotional material for anyone! Are we really that stupid? Do Americans really take these 30 second blurbs of political trash talk into consideration when casting their ballot? I’m sick and tired of candidates trying to demoralize and falsely accuse their opponents and using those accusations as an excuse to why they’d make a great president. Just tell us why you’d make a great president, not why your opponent wouldn’t! Are we in middle school again? Do we really still pertain to spreading rumors around the playground so everyone will think Sally has stinky feet?

Please stop spending money on political trash talk, and just tell us why you (Obama/McCain) would make a good president.

Obama’s Speech Versus Washington Post Political Cartoon

With as many speeches as politicians running for offices give, it’s no wonder why they have someone else write their speeches. There’s no shame in it, all politicians need help to run their incredibly stressful campaigns. However, what happens when a speech writer has a slight authenticity problem? Well, in Barack Obama’s case he diverts the attention by making controversial statements that become news worthy. While in Lebanon, Virginia last Tuesday, Obama clearly made statements almost identical to a political cartoon drawn by the Washington Post’s political cartoonist Tom Toles. Here are the statements Obama made last Tuesday.

Now make what you want of the whole “lipstick” issue, but what I’d like to focus on is his “stir-up Washington” comment regarding the McCain campaign. Take a look at this Washington Post political cartoon from Friday, September 5.

See the similarity?

Joe Biden Admits Hillary Clinton Might Have Been Better Pick For VP

What’s going on with the democrats? Now I’m not a professional politician, but I’m pretty sure the last thing anyone is supposed to do while running for office is admit someone else “might have been a better pick than me.” I mean this seems so bluntly uncharismatic I got to wonder, is Joe Biden trying to back out of the position and give it to Hillary?

On the Clinton side of the spectrum, I can’t image Hillary would want to run for VP now, regardless of how it would influence Obama’s chance of winning the election. Right now,  Hillary is sitting in the driver’s seat to be the democratic candidate for President in 2012. But wouldn’t Obama and Biden know that? See for yourself, I don’t know what to make of it.

Is this a political strategy for Hillary in 2012?

Today We Remember…

Politics aside,  today is a day when all Americans should come together and remember what happened on this tragic day seven years ago. For the first time since Pearl Harbor, a major attack was brought to the front steps of the our great country. This day reminds us that tomorrow is never guaranteed and we should appreciate our blessings.

Today is not about campaigns, slogans or propaganda. This day serves as a reminder to never forget those which have come before us. It serves as a day to remember the souls of the people who died in this tragic accident, as well as those who served so bravely to rescue those who they could.

As Americans, we get so caught up in our political views and our everyday lives that we sometimes forget we are bounded together under this great nation. We’re so privileged by the rights and freedoms our forefathers fought for that we sometimes undermine the prosperity that allows us to live our luxurious lifestyles.

If for no other reason, please just take a moment today to pay respect to those who gave their life to this tragic accident seven years ago.

Never forget…

Are Political Polls Accurate?

It Seems that everyday I hear a new statistic about Obama or McCain “bouncing” up a few points in the latest polls. Now I know there’s no way these polls can ever be 100 percent accurate, but just how close are they? How do they work? Are polls conducted by big the media conglomerates MSNBC, ABC, CNN, or Fox News compromised by personal interest?

According to George Gallup, its hard to comprehend how a couple of thousand individuals can accurately represent the entire U.S. population, but if done correctly they can. The key is making sure that pollsters draw good samples when conducting their statistics.

Gallup liked to explain his view using his soup analogy. “one spoonful of soup can accurately represent the taste of the whole pot so long as everything is well-stirred.”

Stirring is the key. Scientific sampling can only be accurate if the samples are thoroughly stirred. It’s what introduces the element of random. To further read Gallup’s soup analogy click here as he explains standard deviation and the bell curve as they relate to polls.

As delicious as Gallup’s soup theory sounds, DJ Drummond of Wizbang.com seems to have a different recipe for the political polls. According to Drummond, “It’s a bit like saying that if you take everyone’s favorite version of spaghetti and mix them all together, you will get a really great-tasting batch of spaghetti. The odds are you will get a mess which won’t be worth the effort, and that’s what happens when you mix poll results.”

In Drummond’s post he explains that it’s impossible to conduct purely random samples because of the methods used to poll people. Some polls use online sampling, which is limited to people who can afford a computer or internet. Some polls make phone calls, which can have a laundry list of problems in itself. According to Drummond “Polls are best described as snapshots of opinion on one question at one specific point in time and place, not even movies much less reality.”

Now what about personal interest? According to another one of Drummond’s blogs, “there is a clear bias in favor of or against the people in focus of polls by the polling groups.” However, these biases were more noticeable in the major media companies.

I haven’t done the research myself, but according to the Drummond’s research,  here’s what was found:

Obama Favorable
1. ABC News/Washington Post (+3.33 pts)
2. CNN (+3.00 pts)
3. Quinnipiac (+1.97 pts)
4. Pew Research (+1.54 pts)
5. USA Today/Gallup (+0.92 pts)

Obama Unfavorable
1. Investor Business Daily/TP (-2.80 pts)
2. FOX News (-2.30 pts)
3. Cook/RT Strategy (-2.28 pts)
4. Hotline/FD (-1.62 pts)
5. LA Times/Bloomberg (1.26 pts)

McCain Favorable
1. Democracy Corps (+3.27 pts)
2. USA Today/Gallup (+2.83 pts)
3. Rasmussen (+1.89 pts)
4. CNN (+1.51 pts)
5. ABC News/Washington Post (+1.40 pts)

McCain Unfavorable
1. Investor Business Daily/TP (-4.55 pts)
2. CBS News (-2.80 pts)
3. Hotline/FD (-1.88)
4. Quinnipiac (-1.57 pts)
5. Time (-1.40 pts)

Aggregate Stability
1. NBC News/Wall Street Journal (1.81 avg total variance)
2. AP-Ipsos (2.06 avg total variance)
3. Gallup (2.17 avg total variance)
4. Pew Research (2.40 avg total variance)
5. CBS News/NY Times (2.53 avg total variance)

So weather soup or spaghetti sounds more appealing, just take into consideration that no political poll out there is 100 percent accurate. I believe that money and personal interest are definitely two of the biggest motivators in the world today. I encourage anyone to consider where they’re getting their information from next time they try to argue who’s going to be the next President of the United States.

Politics Versus Objective Journalism

I know that US Weekly isn’t exactly next in line to win any ethics in journalism awards, but is it too much to ask for them to even try? After the front cover of the September 2 issue came out with a picture of Sarah Palin and headlines reading “Babies Lies & Scandal,” it was painfully obvious that this publication needs a crash course in ethics 101.

After Megyn Kelly from Fox News confronted the Senior Editor of US Weekly, Bradley Jacobs, about the misleading cover, he had more than a difficult time explaining just what the cover was supposed to imply.  Watch here as he stumbles over his words in his half-ass attempt to fathom some sort of excuse for his “balanced” article.

What bothers me the most is how obvious it is that Jacobs knows this article is purely one sided, but can’t admit to it. Off the record I believe Jacobs knows he’s not in the business of publishing a creditable magazine -he just wants to sell magazines. He provides us with a great example of this with his final statement in the interview when he says “I hope your readers will actually read the story for themselves and make up their own minds.” If that’s not a shameful plug for his own publication I don’t know what is.

It’s depressing that people actually pay good money to read this ridiculous filth. I hope people learn quickly that US Weekly isn’t news, but a poor excuse of ignorant trash that isn’t worth the paper it’s printed on. I would like to take this time to suggest we start a fund to pay for Jacob’s ethics in journalism course, which he obviously never completed.