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ICYMI: Romney’s campaign just conceded Florida. ICYMI2: Here are the results of the First Quadrennial Recovering Politician Electoral College Contest. The Jewish vote for Romney was 32% – up 10% from 2008..but clearly the Obama coalition doesn’t depend on it like the Democrat Party of old. It’s the new youth-single women-black-latino votes that lost this thing. I think I was somewhat prophetic in what I said to you in my email before the election.
What this means is we need to clean house and start to put other faces in charge; the future coalition of the GOP will be a synergy between social Libertarians, Jack Kemp (supply side) Republicans, and something I call Republican NeoRealists (“Neo Realism”).
This will include people like Condoleeza Rice, Allen West, Ted Cruz, Marco Rubio, Alberto Gonzalez, and Log Cabin (gay) Republicans.
NeoRealists will work for, push, support, and make law state-based solutions for replacing the social compact of the New Deal and War on Poverty, while being inclusive of the reality of our population – it is openly accepting of gay issues, and I think the Republican Party should just accept it, support it, and make it known that we’re not going to fight that issue since gays, too, are concerned about economic freedom and prosperity. I think we should just say we support gay marriage as a general rule as a state-by-state decision, and that any marriage recognized in one state will be automatically recognized in another.
To bring forward the understand of the grievances of the black population, we can there tap into the connection of the religious aspect – as churches are a core element in many around the country.
I think we’re hanging onto some ideals that are a little rediculous and there is nothing wrong with waking up to this fact.
The focus of the moral majority of the 1980s is over and we need to accept it and make appropriate changes. The Reagan coalition came together because one person had the vision to realize what unites people.
The youth today are clearly – clearly – unimpressed with the GOP. The only way to capture them is to tap into their desires. They just don’t care about anything, frankly. Look at all the smut on the internet. We can support their smut and just tax it – tax it overwhelmingly.
Read the rest of… Whew! After all that worrying, there were no fights over vote counts, no major machine meltdowns, no hanging chads, and nothing to do for the legions of lawyers on deck for both parties. It’s a little like the aftermath of Y2K, when the world didn’t end and nothing bad happened other than a few hangovers. Of course there were plenty of positive newsworthy stories, from the increase in women in the senate, to patient voters who cheerfully waited out long lines, to the bipartisan bromance of Governor Christie and President Obama. But perhaps the biggest winner of all was Nate Silver, the NY Times “538” blogger, sabermetrician (look it up, I had to) and expert on psephology (ditto) whose mathematical polling analysis proved 100% accurate, making all his critics look foolish and illogical. Plus his calm analysis throughout the campaign made him a refreshing Dr. Spock in a sea of emotional hotheads. I referred to him as the heretofore unsung star, because after this video he’ll no longer be unsung. This may be the first fan song he’s received, but I doubt it will be the last.
Politics and summer camp. I guess my father was right. Funny, it took 36 years for me to understand clearly the point he was making.
The night before camp ended there was an awards ceremony. Sort of like senior superlatives in high school. I’m sure most every camper got an award but I was covetous toward the award I was expecting. I had overheard the counselors say I wasn’t going to get “Best basketball player” (which is what I wanted). But I would get “Best all-round athlete.” At first, it sounded like a made-up consolation prize. But the more I thought about it, the more I liked the way it sounded. And maybe I did deserve it. I thought of my highlights that summer in kick-ball, softball, soccer, hide-and-seek with a flashlight, treading water for 30 minutes, Zip line, and dodge ball and decided it was an even better award than what I had originally hoped for—and now I wanted it even more than the initial award I desired. And couldn’t wait to hang it in my bedroom back home for all my friends to see. And now the moment had arrived. I could tell the master of ceremonies was talking about me. I was so excited when he called my name I didn’t even listen for the title of the award. I just went up front, took the hand-carved and hand-painted award (about the size of a miniature license plate, and sat down jubilant. Until I looked down and read what what I had won. “Best Sportsmanship Award” was written in what looked like green and yellow nail polish. What?!!? What happened? How did I go from potential “best basketball player” to “best all-round athlete” to this? Who wants to be a good sport? I mean, that’s just saying I am a pleasant loser, right? And seems to imply I am bad at every sport since I have to be so nice about losing all the time—and I must lose a lot to stand out enough for an award for how well I do it! I felt about the same way I did as when I was at Bruce Zimlich’s second grade birthday party at Lyndon Lanes bowling alley and his mother gave my a prize even though I had the lowest bowling score of any of the kids at the party. But when my father saw the award tossed to the corner of my bedroom desk, he picked it up and praised me for it. He effused about how important it was in life to always be a good sport, to be “man enough” (person enough) to shake hands and congratulate the winner and never to sulk or whine or start making excuses for when you lost. Or gloat when you won. And recited from memory a poem he and my grandfather liked –one of those inspirational sports poems that drove the point home. I believed some of it, I guess. But not all. Until tonight. I was a good sport in 2000 when the candidate I voted for lost in a heartbreakingly tight election. And I didn’t gloat when the candidate I supported won in a similarly close election last Tuesday. And it made me think about my “Best Sportsmanship” award at summer camp in 1976. Finally, all these years later, I realized it was a good award to receive and something to be proud of. And that being a good sport in life really is important. Just like my dad said. No matter how old you are. New Electoral College Map 2012
Even more than the actual tallies of Tuesday’s elections, the world has been anxiously awaiting the results of the First Quadrennial Recovering Politician Electoral College Contest. Well, it is your lucky hour…. Just under 100 official entrants and contributing RPs submitted their predictions of:
As discussed here in the official rules:
November 8 has arrived. And according to the latest New York Times tallies, these would be the final results of the 2012 elections, should those who currently lead in the vote tallies prevail: (Drum roll, please…) Read the rest of…
Now, I am not naïve to think women are not strength training in record numbers. Years ago, most women would join a gym and only perform cardiovascular exercises such as biking or running on a treadmill. Although great for the heart, this alone does not create the lean, sculpted bodies women are wanting and displaying today. It was always thought that women should not lift weights because it would make them bulky and look like a man. The traditional routines would consist of high repetitions, usually 3 or 4 sets with 30-60 second rest periods. Cardio usually would precede strength training. Group fitness classes such as Body Pump or “15 minute abs” would have mostly female attendance. In some clubs you would have “Women’s Only,” areas, full of selectorized equipment and cardio. Women are displaying incredible results from strength training but the myth still exists. Keeping all things equal, let’s tackle the reason’s ALL women should strength train.
I am bone-weary and hugely relieved at the outcome of the 2012 election. Some keep asking how a Republican Party so devoid of ideas could mount such a strong Presidential challenge and maintain control of the House. Beyond the simple answer; “It’s the economy, stupid”, something deeper is at work. The deeper issues warrant serious thought and immediate action. Paul HodesMy son, Max, is a brilliant out-of the box thinker who has always marched to his own beat. He is 29 and thoroughly disillusioned with our political system. Despite my service as a Democratic United States Congressman, or perhaps because of it, he sees no difference between the two major parties. On Election Day, he cast a reluctant vote for Barack Obama. My sister-in-law, Trisha is a conservative home-maker who lives in Virginia. She leans strongly Republican, grieves over what she perceives as her loss of any real voice in our political system. I have no doubt that she cast her vote for Mitt Romney. I am a determined Democrat. I first ran for office in 2004 to try to change the direction of the country which I saw as controlled by ideologues, embroiled in an unnecessary war and headed for damaging deficits generated by fiscally irresponsible tax and economic policies. Having served as a member of the House I developed new respect for the institutions of our democracy. And, from my own experience, I think I have a good idea of why both Max and Trisha are disillusioned. Our democracy is challenged by the pervasive influence of power brokers and corporate kingdoms which both overtly and covertly seem to hold policy-makers in their thrall. Whether through outsized campaign contributions and spending or playing the inside game in Washington; their influence is undeniable. A central challenge of any political institution, and especially for my beloved Democratic former colleagues, is to accept the challenge of change wholeheartedly. Real change takes commitment and persistence. It takes brutal honesty and probably some discomfort. I hope that leaders in both the House and the Senate are up to the task. For example, in the Senate, filibuster rules must be changed. In the House, the antiquated seniority system is an impediment to progress. Looking outside the institutions, promoting change in our campaign finance system and, taking aim at influence peddling are fundamental to the future electoral success of the Democratic Party and the country. The President’s narrow popular vote margin should give Democrats real pause. We re-elected a President but could not achieve a mandate for a unified Government. The President is personally popular. I’m not at all sure that Democrats generally can bask in the same glow. Democrats see the differences between the parties clearly. But, at least half of the America which votes either don’t get what we’re about or believe the brand the Republicans have foisted upon us: we’re the party of high taxes and hand-outs The antidote is fundamental re-examination and refocusing. We must adopt, pursue communicate and message a progressive agenda for economic growth as the focus of our Party: Education, Innovation and Infrastructure. With a consistent focus and the right messaging we can create a more solid foundation for electoral success over the long haul. Without refocusing and “rebranding”, we will continue to struggle to convince Americans that we can be trusted to govern a dynamic and diverse country in a new century. The Economic Innovation Action Fund works to focus and rebrand current Democratic issues into clear and potent message about a core economic agenda for growth and innovation consistent with progressive values. Join us as www.economicinnovationinstitute.org. President Obama: “Tonight you voted for action, not politics as usual. You elected us to focus on your jobs, not ours. And in the coming weeks and months, I am looking forward to reaching out and working with leaders of both parties to meet the challenges we can only solve together. Reducing our deficit. Reforming our tax code. Fixing our immigration system. Freeing ourselves from foreign oil. We’ve got more work to do.” ===== Mitt Romney: “Like so many of you, Paul and I have left everything on the field. We have given our all to this campaign. … I so wish that I had been able to fulfill your hopes to lead the country in a different direction, but the nation chose another leader. And so Ann and I join with you to earnestly pray for him and for this great nation. Thank you, and God bless America. You guys are the best. Thank you so much. Thank you. Thanks, guys.” |
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