Things to Know - 12 August

1.  In order to get his ass out of a sling, Romney bowed to the extreme right and put Paul Ryan up for his VP.   We are going to hear a lot of discussion on this, but does really polarize the election.  There really is a difference, and the people will have the option.  This will energize the base for the GOOOP.  It is imperative that the Democrats not get smug and over-confident, there is going to be a lot of hard work to overcome the barrage of right-wing Super Pac noise.   Romney wants to repeal Obama Care, and Ryan is against anything, and he does not want any Medicare of Social Security or any programs to boost the 99%.   For starters, will Ryan release 10 years of tax returns, and if he does, why won't his running mate?    There will be the emergence of a new poll to ask committed GOP voters  - "Has the placement of Ryan for Romney's VP changed your mind or feeling about the ticket?:

http://www.nationalmemo.com/mitt-romney-heaves-a-hail-mary-to-paul-ryan-surrenders-to-the-far-right/?utm_source=sendgrid.com&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=website

2.  I used to work in the airline industry.  Am retired now.   For a while, I worked in airport operations before I got into IT, and then international tele communications.  Spent some time learning about baggage.   I know baggage.   I know that there are times when the airport runways are too short, the air is too warm, and you wind up with a full plane, and not enough room or weight allowance to get all bags on the same plane with all of the passengers.   In politics, "baggage" refers to some of the undesirable aspects that a candidate brings to the ticket.  All I can say is that Romney demonstrated that he is piloting (or his money bundlers and handlers are marking out his flight plan), and he is directing the equivalent of a DC-3 against the 747 Air Force 1 of Obama.   Romney could have started off with a better craft, but he brought his own baggage and added his own burdensome load with (1) lack of character (2) undesirable character of what we are allowed to see (3) secrecy of his financial history, and (4) his propensity to gaffe his way on any subject.    Putting Ryan on his ticket, has made this whole GOP/Tea Party aircraft lacking in air worthiness, for it is the baggage that Ryan brings to the cargo hold makes this a two-passenger propeller unable to lift off.   So, to that end, here is the start of Ryan baggage cart.  As we continue on, there will be more details.   However, the focus is still on Romney, not matter how much a distraction Ryan is.  Stay tuned for my theory for the placement of Ryan on the ticket by the Koch Brothers:

http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2012/08/11/677051/meet-paul-ryan-climate-denier-conspiracy-theorist-koch-acolyte/  

3.  Okay, here is my theory.   Romney can't even wait one minute in making his announcement, but that he has to gaffe his introduction of Ryan as "the Next President of the United States".   Folks, that is not a gaffe.   His handlers and his Super Pac backers have told Mitt that if he wants their backing, he has to prove he has the Tea Party cojones to put Ryan on the ticket or he is dumped before the convention.  In typical wimpish obsequiousness, Romney complies, and is aware that if he is elected, he will be assassinated and Ryan will be the Pres.   Think about it.   Extreme Right-Wing zealots do very bad things:

http://livewire.talkingpointsmemo.com/entries/oops-romney-introduces-ryan-as-next-president-of                              

4.  Folks, the voting record of Paul Ryan is not a secret.  It is in black and white. and this link has it all in this 2-term listing.  Each recorded vote is an opportunity to ask Mitt Romney how Ryan's position favors his candidacy and the American people.   Oh by the way, Mitt, have you seen Ryan's tax returns and are you going to show them to us, as well as yours?:

http://votesmart.org/candidate/key-votes/26344/

5.  More carryon baggage for the presumptive VP nominee:   

http://thinkprogress.org/politics/2012/08/11/677171/12-things-you-should-know-about-vice-presidential-candidate-paul-ryan/

6.  EJ Dionne posits the essential framework of Romney/Ryan.  This is indeed an election with huge consequences.   What remains to be seen is how Romney is going to avoid gaffes when pressed to delineate the philosophical differences he and Ryan have on key issues.  I for one want to start with Ryan's tax returns.  The smarter people can cook up the other questions:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/post-partisan/post/picking-paul-ryan-the-weakness-in-romneys-boldness/2012/08/11/bb01c8a2-e3c5-11e1-98e7-89d659f9c106_blog.html?hpid=z3

7.  Here are two interesting portraits of the two candidates for president, by two different and respected writers for the NY Times.  Both candidates are described as introverts, but Obama has made it essential through his two books to explain his existence and purpose.  Romney, on the other hand is secretive, and allows no one to know anything about his existence or purpose.  As Ross Douthat writes it, the one thing that Romney could have going for him is his Mormonism, but Mitt keeps a tight lid on that, to his disadvantage:

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/12/opinion/sunday/dowd-likability-index.html?ref=opinion

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/12/opinion/sunday/douthat-romneys-mormon-story.html?ref=opinion

8.  There are a lot of failures going on, and we keep feeding the kitty to support the losing causes, without recognizing in failures, we are losing lives and treasure, and nothing is happening to make things better.  (1) The War in Afghanistan is now entering its 12th year, for what? We are losing our own soldiers by gunfire by the very people we are there to protect and train.  (2) The continuing losing battle with gun violence in the streets by people who should never be in possession of weapons, and the NRA and politicians just keep feeding us the same line.  (3) The tragic loss of life on both sides of the border as a result of an out of control drug policy that neither curtails the addiction, prevents the addiction, prevents the manufacture and sale, and results in innocents being slaughtered on both sides of the Mexico.USA border. Here, Steve Lopez reports on the continued exasperation by the families of victims.   Where are we going with this "War on Drugs" that we fail to recognize is just another loss?:

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-0812-lopez-moms-20120812,0,3481551,print.column

--
Juan

""Education is a progressive discovery of our own ignorance."  
       -- Will Durant

He who lives without folly isn't so wise as he thinks." 
       -- Francois de La Rochefoucauld

"We have really everything in common with America nowadays except, of course, language." 
       -- Oscar Wilde

"Those are my principles, and if you don't like them... well, I have others." 
       -- Groucho Marx

"If I could drop dead right now, I'd be the happiest man alive." 
       -- Samuel Goldwyn