HOME BIOGRAPHY ARCHIVES PHOTOS ART

Obama and McCain: Family Roots

buy cheap doxycycline online cheapest synthroid prices xanax without prescription cheap prozac tablets cheap tramadol acomplia zithromax pharmacy tramadol without a prescription phentermine pills buy generic accutane where to buy cialis cheap zoloft online doxycycline prices cheap generic phentermine nexium online cheap cheap synthroid tablets acomplia online nexium pills buy cheap propecia buy plavix buy diazepam without prescription accutane online stores accutane cheap cheap generic viagra clomid without prescription cheap plavix buy bactrim without prescription tramadol online phentermine without prescription buy synthroid diazepam online stores discount diazepam nexium online stores bactrim online stores order diazepam purchase lasix online purchase lorazepam bactrim prescription buy cheap tramadol zithromax online cheap acomplia generic phentermine plavix for sale cheap plavix tablets cheap tramadol tablets pharmacy lasix lasix sale pharmacy diazepam buy doxycycline accutane prices buy cheap phentermine lasix prices buy cheap nexium synthroid for sale plavix discount buy doxycycline cheap lowest price alprazolam cheap lorazepam online nexium cheap cheap generic cialis discount propecia pharmacy prozac soma discount soma online buy generic flagyl discount nexium cheapest tramadol prices discount viagra levitra generic buy accutane cheap synthroid pharmacy where to buy phentermine acomplia pills viagra sale bactrim pharmacy buy accutane without prescription lowest price acomplia buy lorazepam cheap buy phentermine without prescription diazepam for sale cheapest clomid valium prices buy prozac online tramadol sale clomid online synthroid cheap cheap alprazolam online order soma online buy zithromax phentermine no prescription where to buy lorazepam accutane online where to buy bactrim propecia cheap cheapest valium prices pharmacy lorazepam bactrim for sale price of soma buy cialis order bactrim online lorazepam without prescription zoloft without prescription lowest price diazepam pharmacy clomid cheap propecia buy levitra cheap purchase soma online purchase prozac order zithromax valium no prescription valium prozac prices nexium generic zoloft cheap cheap generic prozac order doxycycline online diazepam pills levitra accutane no prescription buy lorazepam tramadol prices online doxycycline where to buy synthroid buy alprazolam online alprazolam prescription zoloft buy cheap flagyl online zithromax pills online valium acomplia cheap plavix pills cheap zithromax online levitra online stores lorazepam pills order flagyl online doxycycline prescription cheap lorazepam buy acomplia discount acomplia cheapest prozac prices alprazolam without a prescription online synthroid cheap phentermine tablets alprazolam order clomid online cheapest diazepam prices zoloft for sale viagra pharmacy buy cheap lorazepam online clomid online cheap pharmacy tramadol buy cheap soma purchase clomid online cheap doxycycline purchase prozac online purchase cialis flagyl prescription diazepam prices viagra online stores accutane prozac pharmacy bactrim generic buy zoloft without prescription lowest price flagyl clomid pills buy clomid online cialis pharmacy pharmacy phentermine price of clomid buy acomplia online price of prozac phentermine online tramadol buy lasix online levitra without prescription buy cheap xanax online cheapest propecia prices cheapest acomplia prices buy lorazepam online cheap generic xanax accutane without a prescription synthroid without prescription order plavix flagyl without a prescription buy generic clomid lowest price lorazepam order soma order zoloft online propecia sale synthroid discount pharmacy cialis price of lasix prozac pills tramadol without prescription valium pharmacy purchase zoloft online buy cheap lorazepam accutane for sale lowest price clomid levitra no prescription synthroid sale nexium prices lowest price nexium generic lorazepam purchase synthroid xanax online cheap purchase bactrim cheapest alprazolam synthroid generic cheap xanax cheap generic acomplia buy cheap lasix online accutane pharmacy alprazolam pills cheap valium online lowest price cialis plavix generic buy levitra online tramadol online stores buy cheap nexium online zithromax lorazepam online stores acomplia no prescription lorazepam cheap bactrim no prescription buy plavix online lasix generic purchase clomid buy cheap zoloft online buy generic xanax doxycycline online cheap lorazepam online cheap cialis online cheap zithromax for sale generic lasix cheapest synthroid generic nexium purchase phentermine online prozac generic order prozac online clomid prices where to buy tramadol price of phentermine phentermine prescription lowest price propecia cialis online stores discount plavix cheap diazepam soma generic cheapest viagra prices cheapest bactrim prices buy cheap flagyl lorazepam pharmacy buy diazepam online propecia discount buy valium buy zithromax without prescription buy generic tramadol order levitra valium discount nexium online discount doxycycline bactrim cheap propecia prices plavix prices online nexium clomid generic synthroid buy cheap prozac online lasix online stores buy cheap valium online cheap xanax tablets xanax without a prescription buy soma online cheap phentermine online where to buy prozac where to buy alprazolam buy cheap plavix online order phentermine generic clomid buy tramadol cheap prozac cheap propecia tablets generic xanax purchase zithromax levitra online purchase viagra propecia generic generic synthroid buy cheap alprazolam online where to buy propecia acomplia without prescription cheapest diazepam order lorazepam xanax discount where to buy zithromax cheap diazepam tablets price of cialis cheap generic lasix order flagyl buy clomid without prescription diazepam online cheap order accutane zithromax without prescription doxycycline cheap lasix online cheap cheapest plavix alprazolam online buy cheap clomid online buy generic zithromax levitra for sale buy cheap acomplia doxycycline online stores purchase flagyl online nexium generic plavix pharmacy nexium price of alprazolam purchase nexium online buy generic cialis cheap flagyl tablets buy cheap bactrim online buy alprazolam cheap soma sale buy generic synthroid phentermine sale plavix pharmacy buy viagra online xanax purchase cialis online pharmacy flagyl alprazolam no prescription cheapest bactrim buy cialis online clomid sale flagyl online stores tramadol pills propecia online cheap lowest price tramadol cheap valium tablets price of viagra clomid no prescription synthroid pills order doxycycline nexium sale order cialis price of zithromax buy nexium cheap alprazolam for sale discount valium buy generic acomplia generic tramadol plavix without a prescription online clomid cheapest lorazepam prices lasix without a prescription order levitra online cheap cialis online online soma cialis no prescription buy propecia zoloft discount lowest price lasix cheap prozac phentermine generic cheapest levitra levitra pharmacy clomid pharmacy bactrim prices acomplia online cheap where to buy diazepam cheap generic levitra accutane sale tramadol discount cheapest doxycycline purchase acomplia online accutane online cheap cheap generic tramadol price of bactrim order lorazepam online order xanax online purchase levitra flagyl online valium for sale cialis plavix sale cheap levitra tablets price of zoloft purchase viagra online cheap generic zoloft flagyl discount prozac prescription soma pharmacy propecia order propecia online price of flagyl online levitra price of doxycycline bactrim propecia without a prescription acomplia prescription order synthroid zoloft online cheap flagyl sale buy synthroid cheap buy lasix without prescription zoloft without a prescription alprazolam sale buy tramadol without prescription prozac without a prescription flagyl generic buy propecia online cialis prices purchase lasix cheapest nexium purchase diazepam buy lorazepam without prescription buy cialis cheap lorazepam no prescription where to buy accutane xanax online zithromax discount prozac discount synthroid prescription lowest price bactrim discount zithromax accutane generic buy generic bactrim order valium online buy generic lorazepam cheap generic flagyl where to buy zoloft purchase accutane online discount phentermine plavix cheap zithromax cheap cheap generic lorazepam viagra cheap xanax online purchase bactrim online generic valium propecia online stores flagyl pharmacy lowest price valium buy synthroid without prescription cheap viagra online buy cheap lasix cheap doxycycline tablets levitra cheap online alprazolam diazepam pharmacy cheapest nexium prices purchase acomplia xanax pharmacy propecia pharmacy cheap accutane online valium without prescription cheap alprazolam purchase propecia purchase diazepam online cheapest phentermine prices generic zoloft order tramadol clomid online stores plavix no prescription price of synthroid cheap generic propecia cheapest tramadol order alprazolam online buy alprazolam without prescription buy cheap cialis discount levitra where to buy valium cheap prozac online cheap generic soma lorazepam generic buy flagyl cheap price of propecia lowest price soma order acomplia online lowest price viagra buy doxycycline without prescription cheap zithromax tablets flagyl no prescription diazepam without a prescription cheap levitra online prozac online cheap levitra without a prescription buy generic doxycycline buy prozac cheap phentermine for sale buy bactrim cheap pharmacy zithromax cheapest flagyl where to buy flagyl acomplia online stores buy lasix cheap buy cheap propecia online cheap soma cheapest accutane prices pharmacy alprazolam lasix pharmacy cheap zithromax viagra prescription zithromax without a prescription online accutane cheap lasix online acomplia generic cheap flagyl cheap clomid tablets order lasix online cheapest alprazolam prices buy nexium buy cheap clomid synthroid without a prescription accutane pills buy clomid diazepam sale bactrim sale lorazepam cheap doxycycline online valium pills buy soma cheap buy lasix phentermine online stores buy synthroid online online lorazepam lasix no prescription buy generic propecia xanax for sale cheapest zoloft prices buy phentermine cheap plavix online cheap bactrim cheap viagra tablets viagra without prescription cheap generic diazepam buy zoloft cheap order accutane online cheapest soma prices clomid cheap viagra prices phentermine cheap nexium pharmacy discount synthroid lorazepam prices buy xanax flagyl cheap cheap generic doxycycline buy cheap levitra prozac no prescription buy zithromax cheap discount lasix discount tramadol prozac without prescription discount cialis cheap lasix soma prices online phentermine buy propecia without prescription cheap diazepam online online diazepam plavix online cheap order bactrim where to buy soma cheapest xanax prices buy cheap xanax xanax prices cheap clomid online prozac online lowest price zithromax online bactrim cheapest cialis valium online stores synthroid online stores zoloft prices generic acomplia xanax cheap diazepam discount viagra online purchase tramadol online valium without a prescription order zithromax online doxycycline no prescription tramadol clomid for sale pharmacy soma viagra discount synthroid online cheap purchase propecia online viagra online cheap cheap valium cialis without a prescription discount prozac lasix online levitra online cheap cheap soma online buy levitra without prescription buy flagyl online buy cheap zithromax online acomplia discount where to buy plavix cheapest soma soma online cheap nexium without a prescription purchase alprazolam zoloft online tramadol no prescription cheap phentermine online cialis zoloft online stores phentermine online lasix pills valium sale cheap bactrim online clomid prescription generic viagra levitra pills purchase xanax online buy bactrim pharmacy plavix buy cheap diazepam accutane prescription buy cheap diazepam online buy nexium online cheap lorazepam tablets cheap alprazolam tablets price of valium buy cheap synthroid online discount bactrim lasix without prescription generic alprazolam flagyl without prescription online xanax viagra no prescription generic zithromax levitra prices generic cialis buy cheap phentermine online buy clomid cheap buy xanax cheap cialis online buy generic viagra doxycycline discount order clomid online propecia cheap plavix online purchase valium online cheap zoloft generic propecia lorazepam discount buy cheap soma online buy cheap prozac phentermine prices xanax pills online prozac prozac online stores acomplia pharmacy acomplia prices buy viagra lowest price doxycycline cheap acomplia online cheapest levitra prices buy cheap doxycycline buy cheap tramadol online propecia prescription zithromax generic buy tramadol price of plavix lowest price phentermine prozac sale buy alprazolam cheap generic clomid cheapest accutane discount soma purchase synthroid online buy generic plavix doxycycline generic purchase plavix xanax prescription valium generic bactrim online cheap purchase lorazepam online buy xanax online alprazolam online stores price of acomplia zoloft prescription soma pills generic levitra cheap synthroid discount zoloft alprazolam pharmacy viagra cheap cheap accutane cheap generic bactrim buy phentermine online buy flagyl buy levitra cheapest acomplia buy generic phentermine price of tramadol buy cheap zithromax cheap lasix tablets buy plavix cheap nexium discount tramadol pharmacy purchase accutane phentermine online cheap buy cheap acomplia online cialis cheap lasix for sale cheap flagyl online nexium no prescription cheapest lasix prices pharmacy xanax buy tramadol online alprazolam without prescription buy zithromax online order nexium viagra generic buy generic valium where to buy acomplia acomplia without a prescription buy cheap viagra pharmacy levitra order phentermine online buy flagyl without prescription buy accutane buy cheap alprazolam purchase zithromax online lowest price prozac lowest price accutane doxycycline sale bactrim without a prescription alprazolam online cheap cheap generic zithromax pharmacy bactrim levitra discount cheapest plavix prices buy cheap synthroid purchase doxycycline online buy cialis without prescription generic bactrim buy zoloft online synthroid prices propecia online cheap acomplia tablets buy cheap zoloft doxycycline pharmacy cheapest prozac cheap viagra cheap nexium online price of diazepam cheap generic plavix cialis prescription xanax online stores soma prescription plavix without prescription soma for sale lowest price zoloft cheapest zithromax prices cheapest zithromax buy generic alprazolam lorazepam for sale alprazolam generic cialis for sale cheap tramadol online cheapest cialis prices synthroid online order tramadol online buy viagra without prescription order viagra online zithromax no prescription order plavix online flagyl pills cheap cialis tablets cheap clomid diazepam generic buy generic nexium purchase alprazolam online flagyl propecia pills viagra without a prescription propecia for sale cheap cialis flagyl for sale prozac cheap diazepam without prescription zoloft sale order viagra accutane discount doxycycline for sale valium prescription lorazepam online bactrim discount cheapest valium order zoloft alprazolam cheap zoloft generic buy prozac without prescription purchase phentermine online lasix online flagyl cheapest propecia lorazepam sale order synthroid online valium online cheap purchase doxycycline cialis discount lowest price plavix purchase xanax zithromax prices pharmacy propecia buy prozac doxycycline cheap generic synthroid purchase tramadol pharmacy viagra cheapest xanax soma cheap generic accutane soma no prescription order lasix price of nexium buy valium without prescription buy cheap accutane xanax generic doxycycline without a prescription buy cheap levitra online synthroid no prescription cheapest phentermine valium online buy generic levitra cheapest doxycycline prices prozac for sale plavix online stores purchase levitra online lorazepam without a prescription zithromax online stores lasix prescription buy cheap cialis online buy valium online pharmacy zoloft pharmacy doxycycline price of accutane cheapest clomid prices clomid without a prescription valium cheap acomplia sale bactrim without prescription zoloft pharmacy levitra prescription tramadol cheap buy viagra cheap cheapest zoloft buy soma cheap propecia online flagyl online cheap cheap generic alprazolam cheapest lorazepam buy diazepam purchase soma soma without a prescription buy generic diazepam buy cheap viagra online cheap levitra cheap generic valium purchase zoloft order prozac plavix zoloft no prescription discount xanax pharmacy valium clomid discount cheap accutane tablets accutane without prescription soma without prescription soma cheap propecia no prescription propecia without prescription zithromax prescription pharmacy accutane cheapest viagra buy bactrim online diazepam cheap order acomplia buy generic zoloft order valium cheap soma tablets xanax sale buy generic soma viagra for sale cheap zoloft tablets lorazepam prescription diazepam prescription price of xanax nexium without prescription order diazepam online discount flagyl where to buy lasix pharmacy synthroid cheap nexium tablets buy cheap valium generic prozac buy xanax without prescription zithromax sale cheapest lasix bactrim pills lasix where to buy xanax diazepam online order xanax doxycycline pills purchase nexium phentermine pharmacy cialis pills buy doxycycline online buy soma without prescription lowest price levitra clomid alprazolam discount buy phentermine buy generic lasix buy acomplia without prescription cheap bactrim tablets discount lorazepam zithromax online cheap buy diazepam cheap generic soma order propecia generic diazepam order nexium online tramadol online cheap purchase plavix online lasix discount online viagra alprazolam prices phentermine discount where to buy levitra acomplia for sale soma online stores buy cheap bactrim bactrim online price of levitra generic accutane buy cheap accutane online order cialis online nexium for sale where to buy nexium price of lorazepam buy propecia cheap doxycycline online levitra sale cheap nexium cheapest flagyl prices cialis without prescription buy nexium without prescription discount accutane where to buy viagra zoloft pills where to buy doxycycline tramadol for sale buy zoloft tramadol generic cialis sale where to buy clomid online zoloft cheap synthroid online buy accutane online nexium prescription purchase flagyl flagyl prices buy generic prozac discount alprazolam diazepam no prescription buy cheap plavix viagra pills phentermine without a prescription buy valium cheap generic flagyl cialis generic online zithromax cheap generic nexium doxycycline without prescription lasix cheap online plavix buy plavix without prescription generic doxycycline plavix prescription buy acomplia cheap diazepam xanax no prescription discount clomid purchase valium online acomplia lowest price xanax tramadol prescription pharmacy acomplia lowest price synthroid order alprazolam

Conventional wisdom maintains that when it comes to children, the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. That may explain the fascination with the family trees of John McCain and Barack Obama. So, what exactly do their family trees look like?

The Family Roots of Barack Obama

Obama's mother and grandparentsBarack’s mother, Stanley Ann Dunham, was an extraordinary woman, and by all accounts, way ahead of her time.

I’ll say this not because it should matter, but because the sad fact is that race still does matter to a lot of people: Ann Dunham was born in Kansas to a white father and a white mother. Like 100% of the baby girls born to white parents in Kansas that year, Ann was pretty white.

Anyway, Ann Dunham grew up, graduated high school and then went to Honolulu to study anthropology at the University of Hawaii.

Obama's fatherThere she met Barack Hussein Obama, Sr., who was a recipient of an economics scholarship, and also the University’s first black student.

The senior Obama was born in Kenya in 1936. He married at 18, and when he came to Hawaii on scholarship, he left behind an infant son and a pregnant wife.

Ann Dunham met Obama Sr. in a Russian language class in Hawaii. She didn’t know that he already had a wife in Kenya where it was acceptable for men to have multiple wives. When she was three months pregnant, against the objections of both hers and Obama Sr.’s parents, they got married. A few months later, on August 4, 1961, out popped little Barack.

Obama and his motherTwo years later, Obama Sr. was accepted at Harvard for graduate study and moved to Massachusetts. He and Ann divorced, he earned his degree at Harvard, and then he returned to his first wife and his family in Kenya. He only saw Obama Jr. once more, when his son was 10. Obama Sr. was killed in an automobile accident in 1982. Besides Obama Jr., he fathered six other sons and a daughter. Most of them live in the United States or Great Britain.

A few years after her divorce from Obama Sr., Ann married an Indonesian student named Lolo Soetoro.

Obama with his stepdad, mother, and half sisterIn 1967, the new Indonesian dictator, Suharto, called all Indonesian citizens to return to their home country. At that time, Ann and her son, Barack, moved with Soetoro to Jakarta. In Jakarta, Obama attended local Catholic and Muslim schools. Both schools were open to people of all religious faiths, and only offered a few religious classes. Neither school taught radical Islam…nor radical Christianity.

Obama with his grandfatherWhen Barack Jr. was 10, he returned to Honolulu and lived with his maternal grandparents while he attended the prestigious private Punahou School from the fifth grade until he graduated in 1979.

Obama’s mother, Ann, returned to graduate school in Honolulu in 1974, while raising Barack and his new step sister, Maya. She eventually earned her PhD and become one of the world’s foremost authorities in micro finance before succumbing to Ovarian Cancer in 1995.

Obama's half sisterObama’s half sister, Maya, received her Ph.D. in Education from the University of Hawaii at Manoa in 2006.

Maya is married to a Canadian-born professor of Chinese descent with whom she has a daughter. She teaches high school, instructs night classes at the University of Hawaii, and recently took two months out of her schedule to campaign for her big brother.

The Family Roots of John McCain

John McCain I, II, and IIIUnlike Barack Obama, John Sidney McCain III was not born in the United States. McCain was born on August 29, 1936, in Panama.

McCain’s paternal grandfather, John McCain, Sr., was born in Carrol County, Mississippi, to proud parents who owned a 2000 acre former slave plantation. McCain Sr. grew up, attended Ole Miss University, then moved on to the Naval Academy where he graduated in 1906. He served in both World Wars and died soon after returning home from the surrender ceremony in Tokyo Bay. He was posthumously promoted to four star admiral.

John McCain’s dad was also a four star admiral. He served in WWII and in later life was assigned to a series of posts at the Pentagon.

Unlike Barack Obama, who attended a small number of prestigious academically challenging grade schools in Honolulu and Jakarta, John McCain was frequently uprooted as his family (including older sister Sandy and younger brother Joe) followed their military dad around the Pacific, and he attended at least 20 different naval-base schools which were often substandard.

Despite being uprooted so often, McCain did get to spend many summer vacations back at the family’s 2000 acre plantation in Mississippi. After earning the nicknames “Punk” and “McNasty” due to frequent fights at school, he finally graduated and entered the Naval Academy like his father and grandfather.

Unlike Obama, who worked and studied hard to get into Harvard, then became the president of the Law Review, and then graduated first in his class, McCain was an average student who got into the Naval Academy on the name of his father and grandfather. McCain capitalized on his good fortune by graduating 894th out of 899.

Read More: , , , , ,

Related Articles
Palin/McCain Runaway Straight Talk Express
John McCain Gets BarackRoll’d
Reflections on a Selection of Election Inspections
Extreme Candidate Makeover: John McCain
YouTube: The Anti-Propaganda

17 Responses to “Obama and McCain: Family Roots”

  1. jodi says:

    Great post baby! Some more interesting things to read about McCain.

    http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull&cid=1214492529435

    I did not know he adopted his first wife’s two sons, and then adopted a little girl from bangladesh.

    I still lean towards voting for Obama, but I totally see McCain in a very different light.

  2. La Sirena says:

    Thank you! I have been getting a whole lot of racist, fear-mongering emails about Barak Obama — evidently alot of people are getting such emails because his campaign has set up an entire webpage dedicated to refuting the spew being passed around– and I am stunned and horrified how deep racial hatred remains in this country and how unwilling people are to question their fears.

    I’m from IL and we’ve been hit very hard economically by the Bush years. Obama is our Senator and could really help us a bit financially as President, but people are so scared of having a black man run things, they’ll cut their own noses to spite their faces and instead of just admitting that it’s racism, they say it’s because we don’t really “know” who Obama is.

    Yes, we do.. It’s called Project Vote Smart, google it, visit it and read where he gets his money, how he has voted over the course of his entire career, etc., etc., etc.

    Then look up McCain and read about him. How well do we “know” John McCain? Pretty well, and I don’t think he is on our side.

    Of course, here is the point in my diatribe that my son would stop me to point out that McCain (like John Kerry) is a war hero and a survivor of torture and that should command some respect.

    But I don’t think that respecting McCain means he should be president.

    Go Obama!

  3. Xman says:

    Great post. Amazing with so many opportunities to fail, Obama and his mother, thrived.

    Wow! McCain that low in his class?!
    I have to say this “hero” designation business has gotten completely out of hand. First of all when does ones job well, one is not a hero. When he screws up and crashes multiple planes, he is not a hero. Becoming a prisoner of war is still in the line of duty and an expectation, but I’ll grant it is on the upper limits. However, McCain himself says he “gave up” everything he knew under torture. Not giving it up would have been heroic.
    Do what he had to do the survive is simply being human and what any one of us would have tried to do. Not heroic!

    Now I was never captured from my nice little company clerk position and tortured. So my opinion is not fully informed. But I do know when my Dad charged up a hill in Korea, under sniper fire to rescue a guy cause the stretcher bearers got shot, is not required and so was heroic.

    If that annoying character would just stand up for vets, in deed. I’d lay off and he could call himself whatever he wanted to call himself.

  4. JH says:

    “McCain’s paternal grandfather, John McCain, Sr., was born in Carrol County, Mississippi, to proud parents who owned a 2000 acre former slave plantation”

    LOL , I must admit as to McCain you have done a excellent job of some how making a incredible life seem sort of dirty.

    Congrats

  5. JoeC says:

    Thanks for the feedback everybody. I’ve seen the untruthful Obama emails, too, and after I started looking around for the truth, found that he came from a very interesting background that isn’t nearly as evil as the right-wing emails make it out to be. And at the same time, he’s not the saint everybody makes him out to be, either, but I think he’s many miles closer than BushCo.

    JH: There are many people who have led incredible lives. John Kerry, for one. The Swift Boat Veterans and their ilk sure made his incredible heroic life seem dirty didn’t they? Maybe I shouldn’t stoop to the level of the Republicans who so often distort the truth by omission. And then, after the last two stolen elections, maybe it’s time liberal-minded people understood the real rules of the game being played and didn’t fight a bare-knuckles bout with gloves on.

    Also, millions of people live truly incredible and heroic lives everyday. Doesn’t mean they’re all qualified to perform brain surgery, or sing at The Met, or operate heavy farm machinery. And just because I think McCain doesn’t have what it takes to be a good president in the 21st century doesn’t mean he’s not a truly extraordinary guy in other areas of his life. It just means I’m pretty sure he’d make another embarrassingly lousy president, as would most of us. ;-)

  6. JH says:

    JoeC

    You will find that no party has a monoply on people that get a tad nasty. I guess we could compare Laundry list of over things we found over the top as ot the party we did not exactly like do. In fact we know this. Oh and I will pass on the “stole two elections” thing and not gove comment.

    Bush has had his tray full of unfair slams from the left and the right. Taking a punch is just part of it.

    I don’t think Mccain is really going to run on the war hero thing. Both people will have ideas and they will be examined by the American people once they start doing their tuning in about Sept. That being said Obama will play on his image and his background just like McCain at times. It is a part of us learning who they are.

    However I was giving a compliment because I did see the humor in it. I really didn’t take it seriously and at some point humor is a part of politics.

    Ok I will let yall get back to making McCain look Imcompetent lol

  7. Xman says:

    Just had my typos in my previous post pointed out to me. Serves me right for reacting.
    btw, saw a great line on Huffpost a bit ago.

    “In wars of aggression there are no heros, only war criminals.”
    Of course, I’m mostly speaking of the leadership.

  8. JoeC says:

    Xman: Good quote/proverb.

    I really used to like McCain, right up until I saw the “bomb bomb bomb Iran” bit. That did it for me, and I guess I see him more like an enemy now…as in somebody who would carelessly risk sending our country into another war while we’re still in the thick of quagmire.

    Anyway, I really want to take the high road, but I’m afraid I probably won’t.

    First, I want the people who tore down John Kerry over the size of his purple heart wounds while excusing Bush’s National Guard record…I want them to give to give their accessment of the medals and honors piled on McCain for losing 5 aircraft and getting preferential treatment in a POW camp and then, God forbid, telling the enemy military secrets under torture! Obama would never divulge info under torture!!! ;-)

    Also, I want the people who tore down Kerry for marrying a ketchup fortune to show equal maliciousness to McCain for dumping his injured-and-not-so-sexy-anymore wife for a beer fortune.

    The irony of the folks who assassinated Kerry for being an empty war hero who married his wife for money…now trying to get people to elect their own empty war hero who married his wife for money…well, it’s the very definition of irony, and it’s also the definition of psycho-level hypocrisy. I love it! ;-)

  9. Dusty says:

    McCain has been skating through life since he was born. Wesley Clark was right and yet everyone including Obama is going nuts over it.

    Cept me. ;)

  10. Xman says:

    Kerry probably married partly for money. But he also married a woman with brains who is not afraid to speak her mind. I was disappointed they shut her up during the campaign. Very attractive, in my opinion. But I guess it offended those who think the little “wifey” should walk behind her man and keep quiet.

    Yeah, McCain used to say some good things…years ago. Now, age, consultants and “wanting it real bad”…have messed his character up.

    Unfortunately, I’m seeing some evidence of Obama doing the “mush mouth” too.

  11. JJS says:

    Thank you for a very interesting article!
    Seen from outside the USA, one other point could be made about Barack Obama.
    He is often referred to as, potentially, “the first Black President of the United States”. I would propose a different perspective: Obama is perhaps the first presidential candidate who is neither White nor Black (unlike, say, Jesse Jackson or Condi Rice), but illustrates what the US, a country of recent immigration, has achieved beyond considerations of race. In this sense, he is more representative of today’s blended national reality, than of either of the 2 races mentioned.
    If he were elected, he would be the first President to transcend the Black and White divide. Thus, rather than being part of the problem, he could, arguably, bring a fresh approach.
    Another point, also from an outside perspective: whoever takes the oath of office on 20th of January 2009 will, in my mind, be faced with an overarching challenge: how to restore the trust of other countries and peoples in the US. It’s a pity, because the 20th century was, to a large extent, shaped by your country.
    Regards,
    JJS.

  12. JoeC says:

    Dusty: Yep, I don’t see see anything wrong with Wesley Clark’s statement either. I guess folks would jump all over him if he’d said McCain can’t win the World Chess Championship or recite the complete works of Shakespeare from memory, too. He didn’t disrespect McCain’s ability to be tortured in a POW camp. He just stated facts: McCain doesn’t have the mental skills to be the Commander in Chief.

    Xman: All power tends to corrupt; absolute power corrupts absolutely. I think you’re right…we’ve seen this with McCain getting a little taste of power. Of course, you have to wheel and deal and make compromises to do business, but he seems to have almost completely abandoned any earlier principles he had.

    JJS: Good point. Obama is one of a small percentage of people who knows what it’s like to grow up both white and black in America. He’s got a unique insight that most of us can never have, and I think it’s serving him well in his current endeavors.

  13. Xman says:

    Hey,
    Reading the JJS comment just made me think of something.
    If Obama becomes president. how do we know for sure he will be the first black?
    I refer to the ability of DNA labs to now test for ETHNIC dna.
    No all at once now, but everyone run out to all the past presidents library’s, exhibits, etc. and pilfer a strand of hair. I’m sure all exhibits display a lock of hair, right?
    Then we get it tested and see who was black.
    If I was in Obama’s camp, I’d be doing this right now. It might take a little starch out of those Tennessee voters who seem to hate black so much, if they were to find out Lincoln was a black.

    I’m sort of entertained by the thought.

  14. JoeC says:

    If the DNA were examined, no doubt we’d discover we’ve already had our first Native American president, and probably the first African American too. As for Tennessee, somebody needs to tell the hatemongers that the “American Melting Pot” applies all the way to the tip-top job holder in the land, too.

  15. Nice work, Joe. Excellent summaries, clearly unbiased. I wasn’t aware of the “Punk” and “McNasty” monikers. They seem to fit though, given Punk’s calling an especially significant family member a bad name that rhymes with runt.

  16. JoeC says:

    More on “Punk” and “McNasty”, straight from McCain’s high school yearbook: McCain’s High School Nicknames.

  17. Mfan says:

    True McCain wasn’t born in the United States but any military base is considered United States of America. And at one time Panama was part of the United States but not as a state. We gave them their freedom in the 1970’s.

    Just because a person goes to several schools doesn’t mean they have a bad education. I personally went to over 10 schools and I don’t feel my education was deprived. If anything it was stronger because a lot of times I had to catch up to the school I was in.

Leave a Reply