Clint Eastwood

So if you haven't seen it yet, ABC News has the full 11-odd minutes of Clint Eastwood rambling here.

What do I think about this?  I can sum it up in a few short bullet points.

• This is funny
• Clint is an old man
• He's saying a lot of things that neither Mitt nor Ryan can say
• It's supposedly unscripted (I'll buy that) so we can't blame the RNC for it
• Clint is 82 damn years old
• How many 82 year old men do you know don't ramble?
• It has nothing to do with anything
• Except maybe pulling attention away from the issues at hand.

While we're all pointing and laughing at a batty old man being obscene and hawking old catch phrases, Mitt isn't answering any questions. Ryan is also not having to account for the gross inaccuracies in HIS speech.  We're all too busy talking about Clint Eastwood, who means exactly "fuck-all" to the future of this country's government.

I'm getting just cynical enough to believe this WAS some stunt Clint was put up to (or came up with himself, the man IS a smart dude) to muddy the waters.  Not that the average American voter tries too hard to see through the murk--that's not the point.

The point is, if someone IS to say, "Wait a minute, why exactly did Ryan make all that crap up?" and start looking into the facts there had better be plenty of distractions and obstacles in the way.  And Clint Eastwood being loony-tunes is a WONDERFUL distraction.

That's really all I have to say about Clint and his chair.

Your Ohio Primary

ok...so I've moved to a whole different end of the state. That's kinda disturbing on some levels...but not, on others. But I'm still in Ohio, so thankfully many of my links are still valid. Changing them is the next big project I have.

But today, I wanna look into the primary. When it is, who can vote, etc etc. Let's go consult Google.

By a round-a-bout way, I found this handy dandy schedule. This guy has some pretty nifty graphics, so it's a bit better than my postage. Not a bad site on the whole...go check it out!

This tells us that Ohio has a joint primary (both Democratic and Republican parties hold primary elections the same day) on March 4th. This is after super-Tuesday, so it makes our primary even more irrelevant than most...kinda sad.

I believe the best way to investiage the how-tos of a primary is through the Ohio offices of the parties...so lets go back to Google.

The Ohio Democratic Website really kinda sucks. A lot. They don't even have the March 4 primary listed on their events calendar. In fact, they barely mention the primary at all. They do have a pretty robust information base in general terms, however.

The Ohio Republican Website is flashier, and better and getting their message out, but has even less real info. The national GOP website doesn't look so barren of info, and I was referred to it a few times...but I was looking for information on the Ohio primary. Didn't find it, and the GOP didn't list the primary with their events either.

I'm kinda disappointed in both these groups. Remind me why I'm registered Independent?

Maybe the Ohio Board of Elections? Long story short, not really.

ok, I had to walk away from the computer after 2 hours on this. I believe I saw a lil blurb back on the Ohio Democratic Party's site on their FAQs about registering with a party...their answer was no, but if you vote in a primary that will set your party affiliation. So it resets your registration? Apparantly. I couldn't find anything to clarify it, and I'm just about done.

Now for Some News...

Gaza Barrier Breached, from NPR

Slide May Not Presage Severe Recession, from NPR

Goths with Dog Leash Forced off Bus, from BBC

Iraqi Parliament Approves New Flag, from BBC (this actually does serve practical purpose)

How DO Candidates Get Chosen?

I have a vague understanding of this...but not a full understanding. So I'm going to consult Google for you.



In essence, it's a smaller version of the Electoral College. While the primaries for each party ARE held in the year leading up to the Presidential Election, those really don't officially decide anything. Delegates are chosen from each state, and then THEY select the candidate at the party convention, typically held the summer before Election Day.



The delegate selection process is rather...complicated. It varies by state, and by Party. One of my Google Finds, ThisNation.com, had a pretty solid answer for you. That article also links to a CNN.com report on how the GOP and Democrats did their process in 2004...which is a good read.



For the sake of brevity, the short and simple answer is the primaries serve to pledge some delegates for a particular candidate. They're typically only about half of the delegates that will go to the Convention...there are elected officials (think Governors), Party officials, and others with influence who will be chosen for the state at large.



Most delegates will be pledged, meaning they have to declare for a particular candidate before the convention. It's for this reason winning the primaries is such a key element...although in theory, with a scattered enough race (like this one!) it could be anyone's ball game, on account of unpledged delegates being able to weigh in on just one of three otherwise equal candidates.



So, to recap: The primaries elect some of the delegates to the Convention, and these set of district level delegates will vote for the winner of said primary. PLEO's, or Party Leaders and Elected Officials, will also have a say and are typically unpledged. This allows state delegations to be flexible under changing political conditions. Other delegates are chosen as well, with an at-large distinction, and depending on state rules are pledge or unpledged.



Then they all get together, and have a big party, and somewhere along the way vote for whoever they were pledged to vote for. Or whoever their delegation decides on, if they aren't pledged.



That gets important, because...what about those delegates pledged to Bill Richardson? They're up for grabs at the convention. If Huckabee drops out, all his delegates ALSO become fair game. That's why it may not seem important to vote your conscience in a primary, but...really, it is. Even if your candidate drops out later, a delegate from your district could play a key role in choosing the right candidate, instead of just going to support a media darling.

Now For Some News...

Bush to Announce a Stiumulous Package (Put Together With Congress???), from NPR.

Iran is Not an Immediate Military Threat, says Gates, from NPR.

Bobby Fischer Dies at 64, from BBC.

CIA Names Bhutto Killer, from BBC.

Reds Spring Training Tickets On Sale, from WVXU.

Delta, Northwest Merger Likely, from WVXU.

Ohio Supreme Court Rules on Multiple Sentences, from WVXU.