Andrea Wilson Woods' Blog » McCain

And the winner is …

admin — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 18:26:54 +0000

Remember when the Academy Awards used to say “And the winner is …” before handing over that sacred gold statuette? Now they instruct all of the presenters to say “And the Oscar goes to” so the losers don’t get their feelings hurt. At some point during my lifetime, “winner” became a bad word because—to continue with the film industry analogy—all of the nominees are winners. Bullshit. If that were true, every one of them would receive an Oscar, but they don’t. Only one person in each category does (unless there is a tie, a rare occurrence), which brings me to my point—the last presidential debate.

The winner last night was clearly Sen. Barack Obama. With every debate, he has become more articulate and more specific about his ideas while still espousing his message of change and hope. I’m now ready to concede that on Wednesday, November 5, we will wake up and hear the news, “And the presidency goes to …” What? That phrase sounds noble, but who actually speaks that way? We are not the Academy. In the real world, people lose. Let’s say what we mean. “And the winner is Sen. Barack Obama.” I’m sure Sen. John McCain will get it over it.

AWW — XoXo

P.S. I don’t trust the polls though. My prediction as of today is that Obama will win by no more than 30 electoral votes.

Choose your words wisely

admin — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 23:16:51 +0000

It took me several days to figure out why I thought Obama performed better than McCain at the presidential debate on Friday night. Before I even listened to what the pundits had to say (I’m addicted to CNN, Fox News, and MSNBC—in that order), I knew Obama had the slight edge and his poll numbers would rise by Monday. The key to Obama’s success was his words and his delivery, which in the past I always found slightly wooden. Unlike McCain, who referred to Obama as “my opponent” and stared at the moderator causing his eyes to be downward when the camera was focused straight on him, Obama spoke directly to Sen. McCain and directly into the camera. These two choices—the much more personal use of “you” instead of a generic noun and facing the audience (i.e. the millions of Americans watching the debates on TV)—gave Obama’s words more depth as well as a harder punch when necessary. He remained personable and friendly even as he pointed out McCain’s flaws, while the older senator teetered between condescending and stubborn. (Did we really need a recap of his opinion about pork-barrel spending?)

Anyway, in my opinion, Obama had his best debate ever. Maybe he should give Hillary a call and thank her for teaching him the ropes. As for Sen. McCain, he needs to work on looking into the camera and addressing his opponent—not the moderator.

AWW — XoXo

Leave your opinion at home

admin — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 17:19:38 +0000

I think Jill Greenberg did herself a great disservice when she allowed her personal views to affect her recent assignment, a photo shoot of Senator John McCain, for The Atlantic. She says the magazine didn’t vet her properly, that her views are anti-Bush so maybe “it was somewhat irresponsible for them to hire me.” Well maybe Ms. Greenberg the magazine assumed you would be a professional and do your job, which is to take great pictures—not smear a presidential candidate. Some conservative pundits blame The Atlantic, insinuating it was some kind of conspiracy against Senator McCain, but I believe Ms. Greenberg acted on her own here. This time I’ll give The Atlantic the benefit of the doubt.

AWW — XoXo

Principles vs. principled: the politics fix

admin — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 01:44:04 +0000

I’m fired up about this election because—for the first time ever—I am an undecided voter. Not that it matters in California, as Senator Barack Obama is a shoo-in for the state, but I still like to think my vote matters, at least to me it does.

So I ask you … do I vote for my principles, which are actually far more centered than people believe, but if someone drew a line in the sand, I would lean to the left. Or do I vote for someone who I think is principled—Senator John McCain. Obama changes his mind faster than I switch my shoes; at least McCain’s opinions change over the course of many years. (That’s a joke. Laugh. Now.)

A friend wisely informed me that no politician is principled so I should vote with my principles, but I need more convincing.

I’m also appalled by the media coverage of Governor Sarah Palin. I may not agree with her politics, but she is not a bimbo or a bitch—two insults hurled by close friends and family members. For the record, she never banned books, and she never said “God made dinosaurs 4000 years ago as ultimately flawed creatures“—a blogger made up those statements (and more) and attributed them to her just for fun.

Don’t panic though. I may defend Palin against false rumors, but I do think her record should be closely scrutinized (although can the pundits please stop acting as though McCain is going to drop dead the minute he takes office). I also believe I have more than one choice; at this moment I plan to write in a candidate although I’m open to suggestions.

So give me some feedback—convince me. Why should I vote for your candidate?

One more thing … you have to check out this out this Biden story and clip.

AWW — XoXo

P.S. Look up ugly rumors before emailing them to your friends by visiting these websites: Fact Check and Snopes.