Friday, February 15, 2008

'Straight Talk Express' Not Exactly Straight

We remember when the John McCain campaign bus was called the "Straight Talk Express." But now that he's the GOP nominee for president, Sen. John McCain's talk is turning out to be something less than straight.

To wit: McCain, a former prisoner of war in North Vietnam, has consistently opposed torture by U.S. agents. This opposition included waterboarding, the practice of simulated drowning that apparently dates back to the Spanish Inquisition.

This week, however, McCain flip-flopped on waterboarding, a flip that has not gone unnoticed in the blogosphere.

Here's the McCain headline as interpreted by The Huffington Post:

John McCain Sells His Soul to the Right: Backs Off on Torture Ban

3 comments:

Savage Baptist said...

But now that he's the GOP nominee for president, Sen. John McCain's talk is turning out to be something less than straight.

"Now?"

Y'know, I've never thought a technique that leaves its victims, as far as I can tell, unmarked and unharmed, is so bad that it should be outlawed under all circumstances, so I've not agreed with Senator McCain on his previous waterboarding position. However, it's no surprise to many of us that Senator McCain speaketh with forked tongue; that's why the conservatives, by and large, have been so dead-set against him. "Now" isn't really the applicable word. You need a phrase, something like, "In perfect accord with his previous practice..."

The pitiful part is that I'm probably gonna wind up voting for the *******.

Anonymous said...

I certainly look forward to the day when any degree of pain can be induced directly in the brain. Imagine all the intelligence "we" will gather without leaving a mark! That will certainly be a day worth looking forward to.

Jeff Shaw said...

I'm not defending McCain or waterboarding. I'm defending the right to change one's mind.

This politi-speak term "flip-flop" is so overused; its connotation is compeletely negative, and utilized to project some sort of weakness in judgment. To the contrary, People with good judgment skills often (with convincing evidence) change their minds.

Instead of noting the inconsistency and trying to determine why, or even IF there is an inconsistency, It's "dumb downed" into a "flip-flop."

If we are ever to get things fixed in this mess of a country, we're going to have to smarten up our politics. Take the high road. That's a stupid Rush trick.