Kerry: "None of your business!"

[angus]

Hi Brambilla, yes I live in Livermore!  We like hanging out in your side of the Bay sometimes.  Parking is a bitch in SF, so it's best to take the train into the city from the Dublin/Pleasanton stop, which is a few miles away.  

[NHPolitico]

The WH is acting in a very co-ordinated fashion to take advantage of this gaffe of Kerry-- suggesting he's either a liar or he is representing Europe's interests in an American election (Bush will suggest that he wants the votes of Americans, not Frenchmen).   They obviously know it's a total winner.  

[angus]

Questions about how foreign leaders would vote in November election--if they could--have become prominent.  Some might even like it if we just go to the United Nations and ask for a show of hands.  With all the glee among Democrats about how foreign leaders fear/loathe Bush and want Kerry to win, it seems important to remind ourselves of Jan Peter Balkenende.

It is not surprising that the Dutchman is more conservative-friendly.  The low countries have always been a place where you could go to speak and think freely.  Voltaire may have been claimed by France, for example, but he did most of his thinking in the Netherlands.  And Amsterdam is headquarters for more american business than any other city in the region, with good reason.  Unlike most of its neighbors, the Dutch are much more conservative.  The most objective measure of how 'liberal' a country is, in my opinion, is what fraction of a nation's GDP is government.  In France, this number is about 53%.  In North Korea, it's officially 100%.  By comparison, that of the US (and UK as well) is something like 30%.  Holland's is a respectable 40%.  Spain?  38%.  Evidence of the true conservativism of the Dutch-Flemish is suggested in many ways.  The legalization of prostitution, for example.  It's a business, why let the leftist/moralists run them out of town?  Legalize it, regulate it, let it become part of the GDP.  Similarly, tolerance for cannabis suggests real respect for the conservatism I like to think describes my own conservatism.  I lived and worked in Amsterdam back in 2002, and enjoyed my stay immensely, for many reasons.  One reason was the willingness of the Dutch people to discuss politics openly.  No apologies.  No silly white-man's guilt.  Bring up that the Dutch transported 2.7 million Africans to the Americas (far more than any other nation) and they'll say, "Ja, wat ist de probleem?"  Yes, what's the big deal?  But if you bring up Jean-Marie LePen to a Frenchman he'll say he's humiliated to be French quicker than a Massachusetts Moralist would disown George Bush.

Bush meets today in the Oval Office with the Dutch prime minister, Jan Peter Balkenende, whose country has contributed 1,100 troops to the occupation of Iraq.  John Hassell of the Newark Star-Ledger writes that Balkenende said yesterday that "more cooperation between Europe and the United States -- not less -- is necessary to defeat al Qaeda, which is suspected of mounting the deadly attacks in Madrid last week."  Daniel Williams reports in The Washington Post that Britain, Italy, Poland -- and yes, the Netherlands -- are among the European countries remaining steadfast with Bush on Iraq.

Naar voren brengen!  (Bring it on!)

[M]

I have a lot of respect for leaders in Europe, Latin America, East Asia, and the Middle East who have been strong allies throughout this campaign. Most notable perhaps are the Eastern Europeans, who know what totalitarianism means and were relieved by American policies in their lifetime. To those brave allies, thank you very much.

[??????????]

"This president needs to stop
changing the subject by
responding to my silly comments.
My comments are none of his
business."

My name is Mr Ed. A horse is a horse of course of course..sorry. People said Bush looks like a monkey. Kerry looks like a horse.

[Gustaf]

Questions about how foreign leaders would vote in November election--if they could--have become prominent.  Some might even like it if we just go to the United Nations and ask for a show of hands.  With all the glee among Democrats about how foreign leaders fear/loathe Bush and want Kerry to win, it seems important to remind ourselves of Jan Peter Balkenende.

It is not surprising that the Dutchman is more conservative-friendly.  The low countries have always been a place where you could go to speak and think freely.  Voltaire may have been claimed by France, for example, but he did most of his thinking in the Netherlands.  And Amsterdam is headquarters for more american business than any other city in the region, with good reason.  Unlike most of its neighbors, the Dutch are much more conservative.  The most objective measure of how 'liberal' a country is, in my opinion, is what fraction of a nation's GDP is government.  In France, this number is about 53%.  In North Korea, it's officially 100%.  By comparison, that of the US (and UK as well) is something like 30%.  Holland's is a respectable 40%.  Spain?  38%.  Evidence of the true conservativism of the Dutch-Flemish is suggested in many ways.  The legalization of prostitution, for example.  It's a business, why let the leftist/moralists run them out of town?  Legalize it, regulate it, let it become part of the GDP.  Similarly, tolerance for cannabis suggests real respect for the conservatism I like to think describes my own conservatism.  I lived and worked in Amsterdam back in 2002, and enjoyed my stay immensely, for many reasons.  One reason was the willingness of the Dutch people to discuss politics openly.  No apologies.  No silly white-man's guilt.  Bring up that the Dutch transported 2.7 million Africans to the Americas (far more than any other nation) and they'll say, "Ja, wat ist de probleem?"  Yes, what's the big deal?  But if you bring up Jean-Marie LePen to a Frenchman he'll say he's humiliated to be French quicker than a Massachusetts Moralist would disown George Bush.

Bush meets today in the Oval Office with the Dutch prime minister, Jan Peter Balkenende, whose country has contributed 1,100 troops to the occupation of Iraq.  John Hassell of the Newark Star-Ledger writes that Balkenende said yesterday that "more cooperation between Europe and the United States -- not less -- is necessary to defeat al Qaeda, which is suspected of mounting the deadly attacks in Madrid last week."  Daniel Williams reports in The Washington Post that Britain, Italy, Poland -- and yes, the Netherlands -- are among the European countries remaining steadfast with Bush on Iraq.

Naar voren brengen!  (Bring it on!)

I have always liked Holland.

[Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.]

KERRY: NO FOREIGN ENDORSEMENTS, PLEASE... Kerry Foreign Policy Advisor Rand Beers issued the following statement today: "...It is simply not appropriate for any foreign leader to endorse a candidate in America's presidential election. John Kerry does not seek, and will not accept, any such endorsements"...

---

I am still trying to digest this statement..I find the statement, at the very least, a little presumptuous (except in the case of NKorea) and highly arrogant, even more so considering that Kerry is the one who claimed many leaders have privately endorsed him.

[angus]

...I find the statement, at the very least, a little presumptuous (except in the case of NKorea) ...

ROFL.  

[Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.]

I am still struggling with the Kerry Foreign Advisor statement.  I need to see the context the statement...if the statement was simply a response to a reporter's question, then it was dumb...but if it was given in the form of a press release, it is EXTREMELY stupid.

Why would Kerry want to give this story more airtime by admitting his original comment amounted to no more than boasting about some unnamed leaders’ inappropriate remarks, therefore painting a picture of Kerry accepting shame as if it were to his glory?!!!
 

[zachman]

It wasn't a good move for Kerry, but it is no big whoop.

What does ROFL mean?

[Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.]

What does ROFL mean?

Rolling on floor laughing

[angus]

jmfcst,
Can you give a link to this story?
Thanks.

[M]

Kerry has also been endorsed by former Malaysian PM Mahathir Mohammed, Kerry refused this endorsement and rightly labled him an anti-Semite. Kerry was then endorsed by Spanish PM-elect Zapatero, elicitng this comment.

In fact, Kerry is taking the right approach now. But he sure took his sweet time getting here.

[angus]

I don't think it's the fact that he took his time getting to this position that has people flummoxed.  Maybe it's the fact that he would even consider allowing such outside intervention, especially in our time of war and paranoia, but at any time really, that seems so irresponsible.  Zapatero is in the news all the time lately, like Michael Jackson's nose and the space shuttle Challenger once apon a time, but I don't know much about Mahathir Mohammed, though.  

[Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.]

jmfcst,
Can you give a link to this story?
Thanks.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,114568,00.html

Kerry "rejects any association" with Mahathir, "an avowed anti-Semite (search) whose views are totally deplorable," said Kerry foreign policy adviser Rand Beers in a statement.

“This election will be decided by the American people, and the American people alone.  It is simply not appropriate for any foreign leader to endorse a candidate in America’s presidential election. John Kerry does not seek, and will not accept, any such endorsements,” Beers said.

---

Well, now we know the context, LOL!  The endorsements were so embarrassing, Kerry's campaign had to distance itself.

So far, Kerry's foreign endorsement list includes:

1) NKorea
2) Malaysian's avowed anti-Semite Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad
3) Spain's newly elected "we rather surrender than fight" President Jose-Luis Rodriguez Zapatero

Who's next on the Kerry endorsement list, bin Laden himself?!

Like I said, this little fiasco is a WIN-WIN-WIN for Bush.  Keep it coming! LOL

[M]

Mahathir Mohammed's widely publicized comments at last year's meeting of the organization of the Islamic Conference recognized that the Jews effectively controlled the West in various interconnected ways and were using this power to eternally suppress the development of the Islamic World. PM of Malaysia for 22 years.

[Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.]

Mahathir Mohammed's widely publicized comments at last year's meeting of the organization of the Islamic Conference recognized that the Jews effectively controlled the West in various interconnected ways and were using this power to eternally suppress the development of the Islamic World. PM of Malaysia for 22 years.

You're not saying you agree that the Jews control the West, are you?

[angus]

Everyone knows that plutocratic Jews control both parties.  It's a win-win situation.  Sorry, bad joke.  Here's the official party line:
http://asem.inter.net.th/asem-info/malaysia/leader.html
Here's some editorial:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/2059518.stm
It seems Dr Mahathir bin Mohamad is pretty nasty old fart.

 Remember Goliad

[M]

Oh no, does this mean Kerry will win the nasty antisemitic old fart demographic!?! Or only the  much smaller nasty antisemitic old Malay fart demographic?

[angus]

He who laughs, lasts.  Shalom.  The world could be a lot worse.  I suppose that Kerry's 'endorsements' will be at least  as big a problem as a benefit.  Still, it's no secret that anyone who wraps themselves up in the flag is a Republican.  That's the tie that binds.  And that's why Kerry won't win this time.

[??????????]

I thought this was funny :

[angus]

Howard Dean is on Hannity and Colmes just now and says, "Maybe it's time for a Democrat in the white house.  Who cares if they're a liberal?  If he can get us out of Iraq, if he can balance the budget, then it's time for a liberal in the white house."  You can add that to the list of leaders endorsing Kerry.  (I'm counting a former Governor of Vermont as a World Leader)  He goes on to say, "...I have no idea if I'll run for office again.  It's too early to ask."

We report.  You decide.

[Ben.]

"...I have no idea if I'll run for office again.  It's too early to ask."

I reckon that Dean will either run again for Governor or perhaps for the House then again will Jeffords run for re-election? If not then I wouldn’t be surprised if Dean made a run for the senate and very probably win…he seems to rapidly becoming an institution in Vermont, did not Vermont have an open primary? and hadn’t Dean already withdrawn from the race? and yet he got 60% of the vote!...IMHO he can really have his pick of elected offices from Vermont…and hey he brings some colour to the proceedings…  

[Swing low, sweet chariot. Comin' for to carry me home.]

[On vacation], Mr. Kerry could not entirely escape the hazards of the arena he had left behind. He had just sat down for a bite to eat on the crowded patio near the [ski]
lift line when a waiting skier, John Norris, shouted: "Hey, John! What foreign leaders talked to you?"

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/03/19/politics/campaign/19KERR.html?ei=5062&en=ebf890a7a4528650&ex=1080277200&partner=GOOGLE&pagewanted=print&position=

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Another case of laughing at the "superior" intellect...LOL!

[??????????]

I like the way he talked smack about the Secret Service agent. Yes Kerry, the treat the common person like crap side is really going to win you votes.