Professor Bainbridge...on law, politics, religion, culture & food

Really, Professor Bainbridge, do you have any doubt as to whether Barack Omaba is fundamentally loyal to the US and its institutions?

If you don’t, then putting forward this ad is intellectually shallow.  Both Obama quotes are single words with ellipses on both sides!  “What does Barack Obama really believe?” Believe about what?  What belief isn’t clear in the mind of the narrator?

If you do harbor doubts as to whether Obama is a loyal American, damn, you are one stupid law professor.  It is so preposterous that it is hardly worth talking about. 

I look forward to reading how Pastor Hagee and various crackpot friends of Sarah Palin are irrelevant.  Her husband belonged to a political party that wanted to leave the US… what does Sarah Palin REALLY believe?

I have no doubt that Palin is fundamentally loyal to the US, and won’t hold her tangential association with the AIP against her.  Nor should anyone else.  Appealing to stupid people with stupid arguments to win votes is something I choose not to be a part of.  I thought better of you—I was wrong.

Guilt by association in the face of mountains of contradictory evidence ought to be beneath anyone in the legal profession; just because you separate out the punditry from the rest of your blog doesn’t give you immunity from a case of the stupid.  Or maybe you are just being disingenuous.  Either way, that’s a weak post from any self-respecting academic, or self-respecting citizen.

I do not believe Barack Obama is a terrorist.  I believe Barack Obama lacks judgment to not associate with people who are clearly anti American (i.e., Ayers, Wright, etc.).  These types of associations due influence you.  Both Ayers and Wright were a lot more significant in Barack’s than let on by the candidate.  In fact, Wright was portrayed as very significant, given Barack even named his book “The Audacity of Hope” after one of Wright’s sermons, until things blew up about the “other” sermons.  Ayers was portrayed as just a passing acquaitance, until it was shown actually there is a long relationship between Ayers and Obama. 

So while it may be harsh, it is a legitimate attack ad.  Frankly, the best way for Obama to take this on is head on.  Disclose things about Ayers, say why he is not significant.  And not blink.  The worse thing for Obama to do is fight this and try to stop the ad from running.  To borrow David Bowie’s line, that is like putting out fire with gasoline.

Joe, you will eat those words when the press starts covering the things that Palin’s pastor has said.  Like, two weeks ago.

Really Joel?  A liberal blogger notes the hypocrisy of these attacks on Palin: 

We surrendered something a whole lot more valuable than our vote. We surrendered our principles. We surrendered our core values.
We surrendered all hope. We surrendered our shared dreams that our daughters would inherit a better world, a world of promise, equality, justice, fairness and honor.
We had dreamed of a world where our 17 years old daughters wouldn’t be striped naked and raped on the front page of the New York Times, above the fold.
We dreamed of a world where a candidate, man or woman, could run for the highest office in the land and not be “swiftboated” with sexual lies and slander so vicious, so cruel, so gross and destructive that they actually wither our very soul.
I actually believed we were better than that. I actually believed “swiftboating” was the sole property of Republicans. I actually believed we wanted to debate the issues. I actually believed we wanted the real change so eloquently promised by Senator Barack Obama. I actually believed we wanted a better world for our sons and our daughters.
So I thought the extremely bizarre story, so obvious a blatant lie, that somehow appeared in The Daily Kos, claiming Governor Sarah Palin had somehow faked her own pregnancy to cover up for her wayward teenage daughter would be laughed off and quickly vanish form the Kos pages like the trash it was. It was a joke, A sad, sick joke.
But instead of the aborted fetus it should have been, it was born full grown into the waiting arms of liberal bloggers and journalists, who quickly passed out cigars and congratulated themselves as proud mamas and papas. All this in spite of the fact that absolutely everyone knew the story was an absolute lie.
The only thing we aborted was the truth.

http://wizardfkap.blogspot.com/2008/09/its-over-weve-lost.html

I don’t know if Osama is a terrorist.  I know he has extensive experience working with terrorists.  His long standing, obfuscated association (together they spent $49,000,000 taxpayers money on what?) with Ayers - I can’t find it in his resume.

Bob Owens: “We now know far more about Sarah Palin in just four days than we’ve learned about Barack Obama in 17 months. That is just sad. It’s a pathetic reflection of the mainstream media’s unwillingness to do their jobs for fear of finding stories that would hurt the candidate so many of them openly desire to win. But periodically appearing to read teleprompters isn’t vetting, no matter how many months a candidate has done it, and Obama’s ability to perform in set-piece debates is both dubious—Hillary once famously took him apart—and irrelevant.  Barack Obama really has never been fully vetted.  He hasn’t even come close.”

Community Activist – saved Chicago*

State Senator – saved Illinois

US Senator – nearly completed the salvation of the USA – sidetracked by the CALL to save the USA. 

* See today’s WSJ page 2, “Chicago Students Skip School in Funding Protest”, Obama could take 15 minutes off from campaigning to save the USA and save Chicago school children.  What about the children!?!?!?!

Yes Joe, really.

It is wise of McCain and Palin to shield themselves from the press for the forseeable future, since it’s obviously going to take them some time to concoct a plausible response to the first reporter who asks:  “Do you believe, as Gov. Palin’s pastor does, that the cause of terrorism in Israel is the Jews’ refusal to convert to Christianity?”

Intrade is now taking bets on whether Palin will be withdrawn as the nominee.

Joel

Assuming what you say is true--the answer is easy for McCain and Palin:  No, I do not share those views. 

From what I understand a representative of Jews for Jesus spoke at Palin’s church.  I recognize many Jews find Jews for Jesus offensive for actively trying to convert Jews into Christians (who presumably stay Kosher).  Fair enough.  I do agree with that form of overt evangelical outreach (be it Jews for Jesus, LDS, Jehovah’s Witnesses, etc.)--but I also do not find it terribly offensive either.  But if you are equating Jews for Jesus to Jereimah Wright’s sermons, Farakhan and animosity to Israel, and the rest of the stuff going on at Trinity--that is a debate I would welcome. 

If there is an Intrade prediction market on Sarah Palin staying in through the election, let me know because that is a bet I would like to place.

Joe, a representative for Jews for Jesus spoke at Palin’s church on 17AUG (and yes, she was there that Sunday) and said that Palestinian terrorists are God’s hand of judgement against Jews for refusing to accept Christ.  To this you say “I also do not find it terribly offensive.” Highly revealing.

Thanks for your honesty.

You know something Joel, having been to Israel many times and as a strong supporter of Israel (not on religious grounds but on political grounds), yeah I would find that comment from the representative of Jews for Jesus offensive (if true).  As far as Jews for Jesus goes, I disagree with its methods but I think most Jews are not in any danger of being assimilated culturally by it.  I think Jews are in real danger (certainly in Israel) by radical Islam in Gaza, the West Bank, Iran and elsewhere.  I also found those on the religious right who blamed 9/11 on America’s sinful ways offensive and said so. 

I also find the far left in its defense of Palestinian terrorists offensive and said so. I find some leftist groups convincing naive students like Rachel Corrie to go to Israel and Gaza and get involved in a conflict that they have no real knowledge of reckess and completely irresponsible.  I disagree vehimently with Farakhan, Wright, and others who have a real agenda against Israel. 

So if you want to have a fair debate on Jeremiah Wright and Barack Obama vs. some guest speaker to Sarah Palin’s church and Sarah Palin, sure let’s do it.

Here’s the Jews for Jesus sermon that Gov. Palin heard:

http://blog.beliefnet.com/stevenwaldman/2008/09/palin-the-jewish-vote.html

It is not my cup of tea.  I disagree with agressive evangelical conversion of Jews (I personally think people should convert between Christianity and Judiasm the old fashion way which is a Chrstian guy or girl marries a Jewish guy and girl and you start going to temple, or you start going to church, or just stay home Saturday and Sunday and do yard work and enjoy Christmas, Passover and Seinfeld).

But I got to tell you, this Jews for Jesus stuff is a heck of a lot less offensive than statements of Jeremiah Wright or the overt acts of Bill Ayers.  But if the Obama campaign really wants to have that debate, okay.  I can understand how some Jews really resent Chritian attempts to convert them.  I can also see why John Podhoretz is not terribly upset.  http://www.commentarymagazine.com/blogs/index.php/jpodhoretz/25772