Iowa Hiho!

[Mattus]

Romney came to the debate with fire in his belly today. I think he may have snatched back Florida.

[AiA in Atlanta]

Romney came to the debate with fire in his belly today. I think he may have snatched back Florida.

Will have to catch a snipet on Youtube. Word is he has obtained the services of a high profile debate coach.

[Mattus]

Romney came to the debate with fire in his belly today. I think he may have snatched back Florida.

Will have to catch a snipet on Youtube. Word is he has obtained the services of a high profile debate coach.

You're going to see the soundbytes on immigration, which caused the most stir. It's probably important in Florida, I don't know. I guess Mitt reminded Florida that Newt described Spanish as the "language of the ghetto". Yeah that will cost Newt some votes, but it doesn't interest me, or anyone outside Florida, probably. You'll probably see the mocking over Newt's retarded space colony.

But what's really hitting home for me is R-Money schooling Newt on what a blind trust is. He made Newt look like an utter idiot.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=40Mbj-9dw-Q#t=10m50s

Check out the applause Newt gets for the mouse vs elephant comment at 11:05. It's like one guy clapping. He's just admitted he's done the same thing that Mitt does, except that he's a failure and Mitt's a success.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bsALGRuTttY#t=0m55s

The audience boos Newt for failing to stand by his comments about Mitt's Swiss bank account, when he caves in and asks Mitt to explain it, he once again gets talked to like an undergraduate. Meanwhile Wolf Blitzer makes John King looking like a fucking amateur. That's how it's done, son. Wolf Blitzer for president imo.

Ron Paul absolutely refused to pander to the Florida electorate.

"Space program? That's retarded, GTFO. Starting a war with Castro? Suck a dick. Bringing democracy to central and south America? That's not our problem" He won't do well here.

[Mattus]

1. In plain Aussie English, what happened to Mitt Romney? He's the Mormon, right? (Can you see Australians electing one of "those'"?); I haven't been getting much feed back from my American epals. I think they are bored. Most vote Republican too.

It's hard to put the American election into plain Aussie English. Frankly I don't think most Australians understand the system. The response is usually "who cares?". But try to explain the Rudd / Gillard change of power to your American e-friends. They'd be horrified. The idea of representative democracy is foul to them. The idea that we don't elect our own executive branch of government, but allow the backroom of the party to decide that is just alien. Australian's can't understand the sacred rites of electing their own executive branch of government. How can it be explained?

But the issue of Mormon hasn't really come up. The evangelicals have actually lost quite a bit of influence and aren't the kingmakers there were with Bush and so on. Look, America's not as bad as you think when it comes to religion. After all they just elected a Muslim, right?

2. Ron Paul. Isn't he 70+? I remember his name from when I first started emailing people in 1995/6. Geeze. Silly old bugger has more money than sense.

He's 76. He's taken 2 shots at president before this, but he doesn't really want to be president. It's all about getting his message heard, and in that regard he's been by far the most successful of all the candidates. Even the mainstream GOP is taking his message of small government seriously now.

So? Who do YOU think will be the Republican contender? Seriously.

It's too hard to say. Have you seen Moneyball? If you use a sabermetric approach it has to be Mitt. He's the republican ideal, the CEO president, with a long history of turning disaster cases (and by any estimate USA is a disaster case. The value of the USD has tanked, they're debt is more than their GDP, unemployment is in the teens in some states) - bankrupt companies and a bankrupt state in Massachusetts and turning them into a profit. When Romney took office in MA it was suffering the typical problems you'd associate with a state which has an 85% liberal majority. The corruption of the Bulgers, a massively overblown and cripplingly expensive public works program in the big dig, which was being managed so terribly. Despite an 85% democrat majority Romney swept out the corruption, fired Billy Bulger, completed the dig and put the budget into surplus. He let the state senate (read the corporate board) argue about trivial matters like abortion and health care, while he as governor (read CEO) managed the issues crippling the state, and he did so without breeding resentment. He's the guy with the .426 batting average. He looks the part. Hell the guy has "money" right there in his name. It should be obvious.

But Newt has fire in his belly. Sabermetricians will like Romney, but traditionalists will like Newt. Never mind he's batting a .171 season, he's got those non-empirical gauges that the party base likes to see. He's got "grit", he's got "spirit" and whatever other terms coaches use for players who lack ability but who's fathers they went to school with. I think Newt's a good chance for the nominee. Mainly because I have no faith in humanity.

[Mattus]

Has anyone heard if Damon Corp before? It will be a household name shortly.

[AiA in Atlanta]

Newt is an odd one: early in his career he identified with the well-known futurist Alvin Toffler and borrowed many of his ideas. Now that he is running for president he is a social conservative and borrowing ideas from the Medieval Catholic church ...

[Neferti]

1. In plain Aussie English, what happened to Mitt Romney? He's the Mormon, right? (Can you see Australians electing one of "those'"?); I haven't been getting much feed back from my American epals. I think they are bored. Most vote Republican too.

It's hard to put the American election into plain Aussie English. Frankly I don't think most Australians understand the system. The response is usually "who cares?". But try to explain the Rudd / Gillard change of power to your American e-friends. They'd be horrified. The idea of representative democracy is foul to them. The idea that we don't elect our own executive branch of government, but allow the backroom of the party to decide that is just alien. Australian's can't understand the sacred rites of electing their own executive branch of government. How can it be explained?

But the issue of Mormon hasn't really come up. The evangelicals have actually lost quite a bit of influence and aren't the kingmakers there were with Bush and so on. Look, America's not as bad as you think when it comes to religion. After all they just elected a Muslim, right?

2. Ron Paul. Isn't he 70+? I remember his name from when I first started emailing people in 1995/6. Geeze. Silly old bugger has more money than sense.

He's 76. He's taken 2 shots at president before this, but he doesn't really want to be president. It's all about getting his message heard, and in that regard he's been by far the most successful of all the candidates. Even the mainstream GOP is taking his message of small government seriously now.

So? Who do YOU think will be the Republican contender? Seriously.

It's too hard to say. Have you seen Moneyball? If you use a sabermetric approach it has to be Mitt. He's the republican ideal, the CEO president, with a long history of turning disaster cases (and by any estimate USA is a disaster case. The value of the USD has tanked, they're debt is more than their GDP, unemployment is in the teens in some states) - bankrupt companies and a bankrupt state in Massachusetts and turning them into a profit. When Romney took office in MA it was suffering the typical problems you'd associate with a state which has an 85% liberal majority. The corruption of the Bulgers, a massively overblown and cripplingly expensive public works program in the big dig, which was being managed so terribly. Despite an 85% democrat majority Romney swept out the corruption, fired Billy Bulger, completed the dig and put the budget into surplus. He let the state senate (read the corporate board) argue about trivial matters like abortion and health care, while he as governor (read CEO) managed the issues crippling the state, and he did so without breeding resentment. He's the guy with the .426 batting average. He looks the part. Hell the guy has "money" right there in his name. It should be obvious.

But Newt has fire in his belly. Sabermetricians will like Romney, but traditionalists will like Newt. Never mind he's batting a .171 season, he's got those non-empirical gauges that the party base likes to see. He's got "grit", he's got "spirit" and whatever other terms coaches use for players who lack ability but who's fathers they went to school with. I think Newt's a good chance for the nominee. Mainly because I have no faith in humanity.

Thanks, Mattus. My American friends are still not saying much. They "hate" Obama though, regardless of who he is and what he has done.

Eventually this Circus will be over and the Next First Person of the World will be installed.

[Mattus]

As dawn begin to stretch and yawn over Florida on primary day, Romney must be waking up with a raging hard on. Seven days ago he was trailing Newt by 7 points, but today's the only day that matters and polls have him double digits in the clear for this winner-take-all beauty pageant. Barring any kind of nonsense, 50 Floridians will slapping a "Romney 2012" sticker on their Bentley and driving to Tampa in August.

Pundits will tell you that this is the final nail and with Florida, the R-Money juggernaut returns to an even stronger inevitability than before. Don't you believe it. Newt still leads in the national polls by about 3 points, and he plays the sniping underdog well. He's shown that already. If he is behind but within striking distance the day before Super Tuesday, look out! Either way, it's going to be a long haul.

It's no circus. This is the horrific beauty of American politics, the power broking, pandering and intramural backstabbing are done out on the stage for the world to see and be nauseated by. The same level of absurdity plays out here, only behind closed doors and for the benefit of a well fed few.

[AiA in Atlanta]

Has anyone heard if Damon Corp before? It will be a household name shortly.

Is this story gaining traction? You'd think a politician involved in Medicare fraud would get attention but the current governor of Florida (Republican) once owned a company that was convicted of America's largest Medicare fraud while he was at the helm.

[AiA in Atlanta]

Thanks, Mattus. My American friends are still not saying much. They "hate" Obama though, regardless of who he is and what he has done.

Don't understand this irrational hate at all.