The Only Joe Who Has a Place in Campaign '08

The only Joe I want to hear about is Senator Joe Biden. I don't want to hear what Joe Six-Pack or Joe the Plumber thinks about. Sarah Palin keeps on talking about "Joe Six-Pack" and John McCain about "Joe the Plumber". Who are these people? What do these labels mean?

To me, these labels just conjure up more labels, such as "redneck" or "white trash". And this is the way to label hard-working folk from middle America or from the rural South? Or, Alaska? Shame on Governor Palin and Senator McCain. From the way they use these "ficitional people" or "charicatures" to talk about Americans, they just serve to incite the people at their rallies to spew even more labels, calling Senator Obama a "terrorist", for example. Really? Is that what a highly intelligent family man and public official is called these days if he is black? Shame on all of you.

When I hear Senator McCain and Governor Palin refer to "Joe Six-Pack" and "Joe the Plumber" during their speeches, they are not referring to the decent, blue collar people from America's Heartland or the conservative "base" of the Republican Party but rather, I think, to all the "racist", "close-minded", "uneducated" people that still exist out there.

That's why the only Joe I want to hear about in this presidential race is Senator Joe Biden--a real American Joe.

Namaste.

Tina Fey for Vice President!

Tina Fey is brilliant! Her humorous interpretation of Republican Vice Presidential nominee Sarah Palin couldn't be more fitting. For "Saturday Night Live", the McCain-Palin ticket provides great comedic material. Not so for Obama and Biden. I mean there is just nothing absurd or ironic about them. We don't want a President and Vice President who is an easy target for the comedians. We'd be better off with an actual comedian who is smart and savvy like Tina Fey than to have someone like Sara Palin who is definitely not ready for prime time!

Namaste.

Biden and Bagels

On Saturday, we finally found out who Senator Barack Obama's running mate will be: Delaware Senator Joe Biden. I never knew too much about his personal life, but I did like what he had to say during the primary debates. With his solid record of supporting women's rights and the environment, and his long-term leadership with foreign policy, he should make a great vice president.

Senator Biden also seems like a genuinely nice guy who cares about his friends and family and the people he has served. An example of this could be seen last Friday when journalists were "staking out" his home (his only house) in Delaware, hoping that he'd drop a hint as to whether or not he has been chosen for the VP job. Instead of feeling harassed by these journalists (or shouting "No comment!" to the press like they do on "Law & Order", the senator was congenial to them and even brought them coffee and bagels! (It looked like he went to Einstein Bagels, but I couldn't make out the logo on the boxes). Like a good host, he served his guests (albeit uninvited) a treat. Coffee and bagels! Now that shows class!

Namaste.