Posted by CB on November 05, 2008 at 22:04:44
In Reply to: Re: Losing graciously posted by sawyer on November 05, 2008 at 19:35:02:
I think the Democrats are just as capable as the Republicans of dirty tricks--perhaps more so. My memory of these things goes back to how the Kennedy Democrats in Chicago stole the election in 1960. I threw out the challenge, because I didn't know how carefully you followed election politics.
Like you, I feel like the mainstream media provided unbalanced coverage. That doesn't mean FOX did an good job of coverage by comparison. In my opinion, the media coverage issue is kind of like the hanging chads thing. Information systems create their own biases and self-perpetuating errors. Whatever sells is what drives the system. ACORN was very active in my state and city (the state's capital), but the Republican-owned daily paper did not pick up this story. Why is that? It's certainly not because the local paper is part of the so-called liberal media.
I didn't catch the FOX report on the Black Panthers at a precinct in Philadelphia. Since I've done poll watching, I have to wonder what is being implied by this story. Was the Panthers' presence suppressing the vote in some way? Were they accused of intimidating white voters in that precinct not to vote? Were they accused of stuffing ballot boxes?
I'm not sure what to think about Sarah Palin's media coverage. Since I do watch FOX news, I got a little put out at their hypocrisy in defending her against the attacks of liberal media when conservative media have enjoyed the blood sport of ripping Hillary Clinton a new asshole for nearly 20 years. Independent media analysts seem to think neither women got fair and balanced coverage. So why didn't FOX make a stink about the media's treatment of Hillary? And how come some of the most damning criticism of Palin came from conservative columnist Kathleen Parker?
Point a finger, and three point right back at ya. I don't think either party or any particular ideological persuasion has a monopoly on the moral high ground. However, I get a little annoyed by what I perceive as the sanctimoniousness of conservative ideologues. The implication of your post was that John McCain is a better man than Al Gore or John Kerry. McCain's concession in response to a clear electoral victory is simply not comparable to what happened in '00 and '04.