Okay, it’s almost three in the morning here in Minneapolis and I am about as dog tired as I have ever been, but I couldn’t resist putting in my two cents on Sarah Palin’s performance tonight, since I saw it live. In all my years writing movies, going to drama school, etc., I have almost never seen anything so dramatic. It was the rebirth of Frank Capra for our times - Mrs. Smith Goes to Washington. This woman is a star and a star of the American kind we have not seen for years. She really is born live from a Capra movie, from the days Hollywood told stories about the greatness of our country. I don’t agree with her about everything but so what? I don’t agree with anybody about everything except, luckily for me, my wife. But Sarah Palin is a force of nature. Like a Jimmy Stewart character channeled by Claudette Colbert.
The big losers tonight are obvious: Joe Biden, who will look like hackopathropus erectus next to her, a dinosaur out of the Washington everybody hates, and Hillary Rodham Clinton who, I would bet anything, was staring at her television set in horror tonight at the possible first woman president of the United States - and it’s not her!
UPDATE: For the record, I didn’t write this drivel.
Sorry for the low blogging, but as you know I have (temporarily, I assume) become a part-time anchorman at Pajamas TV. We had a colossally good time today with Fred and Jeri Thompson. Fred was interviewed by Peter Robinson and Jeri by me (hey, we’re a start-up, but a CEO gets some perks). Then the Thompsons heard country star John Rich practicing for tonight on the floor below and - friends with Rich - brought the singer up to our booth. Fred Thompson then interviewed him for PJTV. This was followed by the Senator interviewing his wife. All this will be available online at our site in the next day or so.
Oops, gotta go. More later.
Back. I’m off and Jennifer Rubin has taken over the hot seat. Being a tv host could get addictive, especially if we can the technology working. So far, there have been a fair amount of glitches in the hand-offs. I try to keep a sense of humor about it. In a week or two I imagine we wont be having these problems. In any case, it’s about the content and I am proud of the level of chat/punditry we have been having. And the guests.
UPDATE: Fred Thompson goes after Michael Moore on PJTV (YouTube excerpt).
I don’t know what Jimi Hendrix would say, but the debate du jour via Drudge (of course) is who is more experienced - Obama or Palin? Obama insists he is, claiming that running a giant political campaign is just the background necessary to deal with natural disasters like hurricanes (real or hyped). Maybe so.
Of course the nature of experience is complex. As Jimi told us,
If you can just get your mind together
Uh-then come on across to me
Well hold hands and then well watch the sunrise
From the bottom of the sea
Not great news in a hurricane. But then he added…
But first, are you experienced?
Uh-have you ever been experienced-uh?
Well, that depends, doesn’t it, on what the meaning of “experience” is. Obama’s is almost all about running for office. He has done that well, but it is (italics mine) about himself, about winning. That’s experience of a sort, of course, but not exactly what you want in a situation that is about others.
Palin, on the other hand, is a small town girl (now woman obviously) without a lot of global experience. Of course, she has a lot of obvious life experience and a fair amount of executive experience. Still, I would rate her a toss-up with Obama, except for one thing. Obama is a product of Chicago machine politics. (Rezko, Ayers, Wright - they’re all part of that machine in different ways) Palin is a fighter against corruption (the Alaska Republican machine) in her home state. For now, I’ll go with that.
Shades of Dan Rather! Pajamas TV launched slightly over an hour ago with me as anchorman. Thankfully, as I type, Peter Robinson - far more qualified than I - is now sitting in the anchor chair about fifty feet to my left.
How was it? Well, to be honest, in sixties parlance, it was a trip. There I was (only 75% befuddled) sitting in the high director’s chair passing the baton to Cindy McCain and Laura Bush on stage, trying to sound suitably solemn about the hurricane and glad I was on with Glenn Reynolds, Ed Driscoll, John Hinderaker, Scott Johnson and James Lileks - all gentlemen who know how to move their mouths… because let me tell you you run out of ideas fast. This is especially true because, as the world knows, this is a convention in temporary postponement. Luckily for us we are only streaming about three hours today. Coming up… some intereviews I did with American Carol director David Zucker and Jon Voight (who plays George Washington in the film). These guys are members of the Friends of Abe (FoA), a Hollywood organization started by Gary Sinise for the folks in the entertainment industry who think the battle against Islamic facism might actually be worth fighting. This org was supposed to be hush-hush but the cat has now gotten far out of the bag. (Yes, I’m member - though we don’t have cards.), so Zucker and I talk about it. Anyway…. tune in on our convention coverage and let us know what you think. But be gentle, dear reader. We are still very much in beta - and likely to be for some time to come. Nevertheless, we are going to try to evolve a new form of interactive blogger TV - so that means feedback… And you the viewer on webcam, once we get that set up. (patience, patience)
I would guess that many of us who are pro-choice (loathe the tired “choice-life” terminology) were nonetheless moved by Sarah Palin’s heartfelt and principled decision not to abort her Down syndrome child, revealed to the world yesterday during her initial campaign appearance. It reminded me of something about which I have been ruminating for some time: The preeminent social issues – gay marriage and abortion – are quite separate. Lumping them together, as is often done by the media and by ideologues on both sides, is insulting to our intelligence.
For me, same-sex marriage is by far the simpler issue. I am one hundred percent for it on moral, civil rights and scientific grounds. (Sexual orientation is not elective.) And I am surprised so many of my fellow citizens would want to deny others a chance to experience a life of recognized love and commitment, something I have found, through hard experience, to be easily the most fulfilling and socially useful way to live. It would seem almost, dare I say it, unchristian.
Abortion is another matter entirely. I have had a personal experience in recent weeks. I became the grandfather of twin girls brought to our family by my son Raphael and his partner Phillip. These beautiful girls were conceived in vitro and carried by a birth mother. They emerged healthy and thriving. Staring at them brings tears to my eyes.
It is also a stark reminder of the obvious. The pro-life people are certainly right about one thing – life does begin at the moment of conception (when else?). Those of us who are pro-choice must wrestle with that uncomfortable fact even as we assert our political view. In nearly every abortion, a decision is being made between the life (or convenience) of the mother and an already growing and developing life with unique DNA. As much of a religious agnostic as I am, I am seriously disturbed by that.
Still, I remain pro-choice because I would prefer the government not be involved in these highly personal decisions. Also, as we all must acknowledge, if abortions become illegal, they will continue anyway and, once again, become more or less a privilege of the rich. Pretty repellent.
And yet, as I said, I am moved by Sarah Palin’s decision to have her fifth child. In this regard, her morals and her courage are impeccable. I wonder if I would have done the same.
Or is it both? How else to explain the former vice-presidential candidate reemerging as a public speaker at Hofstra University after only one month of “penance” for his monumentally selfish affair. Meanwhile, recent print editions of the National Enquirer continue to detail the extent of the cover-up and the extensive hush money paid via Edwards’ legal cronies. There’s plenty of stuff there for a raft of disbarment proceedings and class actions suits by justifably livid campaign donors. I wonder how much Hofstra is paying him (lectures by bigtime politician’s often carry fat fees). Shame on the university for having him. At least Elizabeth, according to the article linked above, has the good sense not to come.
Watching Obama’s display last night I was pretty depressed. Unlike some commentators (Bill Kristol, Jay Nordlinger) I found it the most conventional imaginable speech, as if the tired ideas of a Walter Mondale were dressed in a production by Zhang Yimou. Yes, the whole affair put me in mind of the Beijing Olympics - all flash and no substance - except they didn’t have a director of the level of the brilliant Zhang, just a lot of fireworks and a pompous set. Obama looked angry to me.
Meanwhile, McCain has picked a woman. I don’t know enough about Sarah Palin (of course I know some and will know a lot more, I’m sure) but John McCain has once again shown he is willing to, in fact eager to, move in a positive and (relatively) unexpected direction. He is his own man. Obama - the agent of change - picked the most conventional of the conventional. But then his speech was the same way. The media, of course, swallowed like eager, brainless adherents - another indication that liberalism is not only dead, it’s decomposed.
UPDATE: Speaking of walking the walking, although she opposes same-sex marriage, which they all do, Palin seems to be by far the most advanced of all four candidates on gay rights. She’s actually put them into law. Way to go. (see Wikipedia)
People have been asking me all day if PJM has any inside dope about the McCain veepstakes. Nothing I would trust, though I have heard rumors. A few days ago it was Romney, until the “how many houses” dust-up. (Romney has more than a few manses himself.) Then there was Lieberman, the McCain pal, but he’s pro-choice, apparently a no-no. This was followed by the woman whispers, especially with Hillary dissed (or not). But Sara Palin doesn’t have a whole lot of experience and someone said McCain doesn’t get along with Kay Bailey Hutchinson. Who knew? Anyway, Pawlenty has risen to the fore as of this writing…. Oh, I forgot - there was a Colin Powell ripple a few days ago. Wishful thinking. In any case, it won’t be long before we all find out.
Is there a greater insult to our intelligence than political “talking points” - those utterances of utter banality uttered endlessly through the udders of utterly uxorious campaign surrogates. [Oh, stop. -ed. Okay.]
Well, they were out in force last night before and after the Hillary Clinton speech - first telling us what she should say and then what she did (or didn’t.).
Who cares? It doesn’t take a rocket scientist, political genius or even Stanislavsky himself to understand the “subtext” of Hillary’s speech last night. She hates Obama’s guts - and undoubtedly his wife even more. Barack stole from Hillary what she thought was rightfully hers. Fortunately for her, he may well go down in flames himself, leaving her an opening in 2012. Everything she said was predicated on that - just enough to stay friends with the Democratic Party but not so much as to help get Obama elected (assuming she could). She did a fine job of that.
Now everybody knows that - though almost nobody came out and said it. American politics is all about all pomp, circumstance and “talking points.” Nevertheless, it is endlessly fascinating as pure spectacle. I got an email from Dutch novelist Leon de Winter, visiting California for a year, who said he was transfixed by the convention as “anthropology.” Veyr Euro of him, but I see his point.
As for me, it put me in mind of that other great piece of American Tradition - the musical comedy - specifically Rodgers and Hart’s The Boys from Syracuse and its great “Oh, Diogenes”. Sing along… “Oh, Diogenes/Find a man who’s honest/Oh, Diogenes/ Warm him up for me….” And so it goes. [I thought you weren’t doing any more John Edwards posts.-ed. ]
Otherwise how to explain her prancing around to the brain dead “Bush is Hitler” meme, but this time with McCain as bloodthirsty dictator. It plays right into the “Obama is a witless celebrity” theme the McCain campaign has been employing so successfully. More likely Madonna doesn’t know or care… But what if she was a secret pro-McCain person? Unlikely, of course. But scuttlebutt in Hollywood… and this time it’s pretty reliable… is that Angelina Jolie and Robert Downey Jr. are. Not that it matters. I think the public is so bored with the political opinions of entertainment personalities, their eyes are rolling back in their heads.
UPDATE: If I were in the Obama camp, this would make me nervous.
