Right, you do exactly that, which is what Obama/Biden do, Bush/McCain, they act unilaterally. Oh, you mean not blinking.....right? This is too easy !! DD
I don't doubt that some degree of intelligence is required for the job. But, I wonder if -- as far as intelligence goes -- all 4 are sufficiently smart for the job, and the advantage that Obama has in intelligence yields diminishing returns, while other personal qualities go underappreciated by the public. For example, Palin seems to have excellent cunning, which may serve her quite well in office (or not, it's hard to tell). I don't see any notable failings on Obama's part as far as other qualities go, but I think it is worth thinking about them.
From the Couric interview... the last line is a doozy... http://home.comcast.net/~duncanblack/couricpalin.htm
Me: I've had to add pages to my passport. Palin: Palin doesn't need a passport because she can see Russia from her house in Alaska.
Holy moley. I've never had a local political rep answer something that poorly. Not in Texas, Oregon, or California. Okay, maybe one San Francisco supervisor. But that is just pretty bad. "He's a maverick" is not a specific answer to the questions asked.
be careful with these kinds of threads. i asked if palin was smarter than a monkey and got my new thread privledges revoked. just be warned.
Intelligence as a criteria is risky - it's a very subjective term, as you deftly point out by making a distinction between "smart" and "cunning". Thus my preference for the traits I mentioned earlier in lieu of the more volatile term "intelligence". I think they work pretty well - for example, if one is informed and insightful, it would seem plausible that said person would have the ability to be cunning. While Palin may be cunning as in "manipualtive and sly", that will only get you results early on, before diplomatic avenues become wary and/or disdainful. Thanks for the post - always interesting commentary from you, JaunValdez.
The way the question was set up handicapped her. "Other than the obvious answer, can you cite some more obscure examples off the top of your head for us?" Google for VP!
Recall that several months ago when Chris Matthews pinned down an Obama supporter as to what legislation he had drafted in the Senate and the guy couldn't come up with an example, the right wing talking heads slammed Obama and the guy for it. Now the NOMINEE for VICE PRESIDENT can't give a specific example of a topic that SHE HERSELF brought up and we are supposed to forgive it? I'm not saying you have to be a robot with instant recall, but when you are bringing up the topic of someone being a champion in fighting business corruption and they have 25+ years experience, you really should have more than 1 example and "he's a maverick".
Yep, that was former Austin mayor, Kirk Watson, who holds some position now in the Texas State Government. Not exactly the VP nominee by any means.
