I just found this all over the internet but had never seen it before. It's worth reposting.
A woman in a hot air balloon realized she was lost. She lowered her altitude and spotted a man in a boat below. She shouted to him,
“Excuse me, can you help me? I promised a friend I would meet him an hour ago, but I don’t know where I am.”
The man consulted his portable GPS and replied, “You’re in a hot air balloon, approximately 30 feet above ground elevation of 2,346 feet above sea level. You are at 31 degrees, 14.97 minutes north latitude and 100 degrees, 49.09 minutes west longitude.
She rolled her eyes and said, “You must be an Obama Democrat.”
“I am,” replied the man. “How did you know?”
“Well,” answered the balloonist, “everything you told me is technically correct. But I have no idea what to do with your information, and I’m still lost. Frankly, you’ve not been much help to me.”
The man smiled and responded, “You must be a Tea Party Republican.”
“I am,” replied the balloonist. “How did you know?”
“Well,” said the man, “you don’t know where you are — or where you are going. You’ve risen to where you are , due to a large quantity of hot air. You made a promise you have no idea how to keep, and you expect me to solve your problem.
You’re in exactly the same position you were in before we met, but somehow, now it’s my fault.”
Monday, November 22, 2010
Sunday, November 21, 2010
What is the matter with you people?
Here is Frank Rich in today's NYT:
Sad but true. Populism is back and it is stronger than ever. The "elite" (usually the person who is using the term) are the bad guys and being dumb is "in". I really don't understand this line of thinking. When you get your car repaired you go to a mechanic with an excellent reputation - someone who really knows his stuff. People go to a dentist or a physician for health care problems. These are highly educated, highly trained people. You even choose your plumber and electrician based on their reputation for doing a job properly the first time.
But there seems to be something new in the air. Lacking ability, expertise, intellectual curiosity or at least making it seem that way, seems to be the new requirement for being a successful conservative politician. Just look at almost every TEA Party candidate that recently ran for office.
But here is what really scares me and should scare you too. As Rich points out, Palin is not the darling of the Republican party. They are probably more afraid of her than are Democrats.
Palin is the candidate of Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. and thus the wealthy. The rich got wealthier under the Bush administration and they want to get even wealthier under a Palin administration. Like Rich says, the populist's are angry at the educated "elite", not the wealthy (who are not seen as elitist).
I can only quote Elaine Benis from Seinfield. "What's the matter with all you people? Have you all gone mad?"
But logic doesn’t apply to Palin. What might bring down other politicians only seems to make her stronger: the malapropisms and gaffes, the cut-and-run half-term governorship, family scandals, shameless lying and rapacious self-merchandising. In an angry time when America’s experts and elites all seem to have failed, her amateurism and liabilities are badges of honor. She has turned fallibility into a formula for success.
Sad but true. Populism is back and it is stronger than ever. The "elite" (usually the person who is using the term) are the bad guys and being dumb is "in". I really don't understand this line of thinking. When you get your car repaired you go to a mechanic with an excellent reputation - someone who really knows his stuff. People go to a dentist or a physician for health care problems. These are highly educated, highly trained people. You even choose your plumber and electrician based on their reputation for doing a job properly the first time.
But there seems to be something new in the air. Lacking ability, expertise, intellectual curiosity or at least making it seem that way, seems to be the new requirement for being a successful conservative politician. Just look at almost every TEA Party candidate that recently ran for office.
But here is what really scares me and should scare you too. As Rich points out, Palin is not the darling of the Republican party. They are probably more afraid of her than are Democrats.
Palin is the candidate of Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. and thus the wealthy. The rich got wealthier under the Bush administration and they want to get even wealthier under a Palin administration. Like Rich says, the populist's are angry at the educated "elite", not the wealthy (who are not seen as elitist).
I can only quote Elaine Benis from Seinfield. "What's the matter with all you people? Have you all gone mad?"
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