David-Dubya Parallels

(Note the caption... Thanks to moby.com for highlighting this very accurate reporting from Sky News...)


Some of you may have seen George on the news recently attempting to open a locked door. Yet another incident to add to the excruciatingly long list of embarrassing stuff-ups for him. One of my favourites on the list would surely have to be his comment that "Our enemies are innovative and resourceful. And so are we. They never stop thinking of news ways to harm our country and our people. And neither do we".

The door incident carries some similarities to the character of David Brent from the UK television series, 'The Office'. Fans of the show will probably be able to see it. Just the way he tries one door, then tries the other door, then tries to make a joke about it...which isn't actually funny. Then stopping and waving as he find the unlocked exit. Kieran, you know what I mean.

Anyway, as you can see, I'm lacking stuff to say. Have a good weekend.

http://thepoliticalteen.net/2005/11/20/bushdoor/

Streep/Clinton/Gillard

Three women have my attention in this entry.

Firstly, I saw Prime on the weekend. It was much better than I expected it to be, and I enjoyed it. Romantic comedies are never my favourites, but the premise of this film was original and the conclusion, thankfully, did not resort to any real clichés... Or maybe it did? That's debatable, I suppose. Anyway, Meryl Streep is an incredibly underrated comic actor. Her timing was impeccable and her expressions and reactions were very funny. As far as comedies go, I should think that it's probably the best material she's worked with. Comedies like Death Becomes Her, Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events, and the lesser-known Defending Your Life and She-Devil, whilst having some reasonably funny moments, were, I think, not actually all that good (script-wise). I don't know what this film would have been without Streep and Uma Thurman (who was actually a replacement for Sandra Bullock). The soundtrack was good too. Anyway, this is where my ongoing discussion and promotion of 'Prime' is to end.

Senator Hillary Clinton said Monday that an immediate U.S. withdrawal from
Iraq would be "a big mistake." The New York Democrat said she respects Rep. Jack Murtha, D-Pa., the Vietnam veteran and hawkish ex-Marine who last week called for an immediate troop pullout. But she added: "I think that would cause more problems for us in America."
"It will matter to us if Iraq totally collapses into civil war, if it becomes a failed state the way Afghanistan was, where terrorists are free to basically set up camp and launch attacks against us," she said (Yahoo!News).
I thought this news was interesting. Personally, whilst I have always been staunchly opposed to the holocaust that is Iraq, I have mixed feelings about an immediate withdrawal. The idea of the US invading Iraq, fucking it up, and then just leaving it behind... it doesn't sit right. In this sense, I probably differ with most Left thinking concerning the issue.

Lastly... It's time for Julia Gillard. Though, in retrospect, I believe Beazley was once PM-material and deserved to win the 1998 and 2001 elections, I am not comfortable with the prospect of a third Beazley run for The Lodge. Despite his Rhodes Scholarship, he has not been saying anything overly intelligent lately. That's not to say that he's been acting un-intelligently. But Howard remains dominant and relaxed and comfortable. Labor needs to shake off the shackles of a decade's worth of crappiness, mediocrity and failure. Unfortunately, Beazley is one of those shackles. He represents a sad era for Labor. An era in which the words Labor and loss have become inextricably linked. Gillard appears genuinely smart and very capable. She's confident in Parliament without getting ahead of herself. She was elected in 1998, which makes her a modern member of the Labor Party, as opposed to someone who may carry subconscious nostalgia linked directly to the Hawke/Keating governments. I think that's a good thing. She was made president of the Australian Union of Students in 1983 and carries a great concern for and knowledge of education. She's a comparatively fresh face. She belongs to the left-wing faction of the Labor Party. And she's a she.

Do not blame me if you go to see "Prime" as a result of my promotion of it and it turns out that you don't like it. All reviews I've read so far have been mixed. The ABC's Margaret and David gave it three stars and three-and-a-half stars respectively. (Margaret was even a little critical of Meryl!) Anyway, the fact that the film stars you-know-who means that I have absolutely no choice but to see it.

And if you haven't seen Woody Allen's "Annie Hall", do! I saw it the other day. It's very, very good.

I'll post some substance soon.

Airbus début

Can you believe it? Something internationally significant happened in Brisbane today!

http://www.news.com.au/story/0,10117,17220900-2,00.html

Real Bush

"Let's put some real bush in the White House! Hillary 2008."


Yes, it's sexist. But, hey, it's a Hillary joke that actually supports her. A writer for The Australian encountered this on a sticker on the back of a car in LA. There are a lot of Hillary slogans floating around the United States today (and, of course, not all of them are pro-Hillary). But just incredible is all the Hillary-talk when the woman has not even announced her intention. Go to Google, or any other search engine, and type in Hillary 2008, or Hillary 08, or Hillary President, or whatever, and the number of relevant matches is quite astounding.

Every journalist's question to Hillary about a possible candidacy has received either no comment, or simply an 'I'm enjoying being Senator' response. And neither has Bill given any real indication either way (though he has said that she would make an excellent president if indeed she chose to run). And despite this, it seems that the world is convinced that, come 2008, Hillary will be everywhere.

Little time is allowed to elapse without even one of our newspapers highlighting the possibility of another Clinton White House. And the Quotes sections of newspapers and magazines seem always to have the latest from Hillary.

As you know, I'm a fan of the Clintons. I would love to see Hillary run at the next election after gwb is impeached. The thought of another President Clinton is exciting, not least of all because, without a doubt, the Clintons are smart people. They are also competent, which would be very refreshing after the long and depressing years of the straight-out thick creature that currently inhabits 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue and enjoys fucking up lives and entire countries (including his own). However, I only want to see Hillary Clinton run for president if she can win. The Democrats need to be sure that the candidate they put forward is the right one. Kerry was intellectually impressive and Kerry had the money to run. But Kerry was too liberal (and yes, it is unfortunately possible to be too liberal) and nowhere near enough likeable to the Americans. He also made some awful, awful mistakes. Beating gwb should have been a walk-over, in my opinion, despite this whole attitude that people should not desert their leader in a time of conflict. After gwb is gone, the Dems need someone who can tear the Republicans apart (which can be achieved simply by pointing to the Republican record). After all, the Repubs deserve to be torn apart after all the shit they've put the world through since they were, in Hillary's words, "selected" to office.

Problems in Hillary's way are already being highlighted by political analysts. Some say too liberal (like JK), others say too feminist, some say not likeable (like JK), others say forget it, she's a woman. Putting aside what sort of president she would make, Hillary first needs to get there. Has the US (and the world) grown up enough to make a woman the most influential power-wielding person on the planet? I know I certainly wouldn't hesitate to vote for a woman. I haven't come across one decent argument for why men make better leaders than women. But I won't be voting. Is she indeed too liberal? It has been observed that she has inserted much more 'moral discourse' into her speeches, referring to abortion as "sad, even tragic" (a significant thing for the staunch pro-choice Clinton to say). Causing minor divisions in the lead-up to a nomination is the fact that, as Senator, she voted in favour of the war in Iraq. This has distanced her from the anti-war activists, as well as some of the ultra-left anti-war Hollywood Democrats, who, it is claimed, would prefer to rally behind an avid anti-war, Bush-bashing candidate. And whilst Hillary has taken part in ample amounts of Bush-bashing, it is her support for the Iraq effort that is creating a couple of problems amongst potential supporters. But, is this perhaps the right course of action for her, considering the actual lack of an anti-war movement in America? The majority of Americans disapprove of the way Iraq is being handled, and disapprove of gwb's farcical way of working, but are not necessarily opposed to the concept of the use of military power. If she does choose to adopt a moderate, almost conservative persona for the presidential bid, let's just hope she returns to the liberal, lefty approach of the real Hillary and pumps it up to full throttle once settled back into the White House.

But again, I do not want Hillary to run for president if her chances are dim. The Democrats and the Left cannot afford another loss. Indeed, the world cannot afford another right-wing US administration. But we absolutely can afford Hillary Clinton.

Coming Up...

It turns out that Prime, featuring Meryl Streep and Uma Thurman, will in fact be released in Australia on November 17. I had the date wrong in an earlier post (which I have now corrected).

It has also been announced that the Kath & Kim telemovie - Da Kath and Kim Code - will be screened on Sunday, November 27 at 7:30pm (ABC). To that I look forward.