What Caught My Eye Today

2008 Presidential Campaign - The economic crisis and raw politics threatened to derail the first presidential debate as John McCain challenged Barack Obama to delay the Friday forum and join forces to help Washington fix the financial mess. Obama rebuffed his GOP rival, saying the next president needs to "deal with more than one thing at once." Obama said he would proceed with his debate preparations while consulting with bailout negotiators and Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson. McCain said he would stop all advertising, fundraising and other campaign events to return to Washington and work for a bipartisan solution. If this smacks of political posturing, that's because it is. I'm sure both of these guys wants to do right by the American people, and salvaging the economy is likely the top priority of both candidates. But it is painfully obvious that both statements were carefully calculated to position either McCain or Obama in the best possible light. I have a hard time believing that McCain is trying to purposely delay a debate against Obama, though I have to agree with Obama on one point. The next President is going to need to be able to multi-task on a fairly regular basis.

Economy - In today's episode of "As The Economy Tanks", Sarah Palin shares her insights on the current state of affairs. Asked whether there's a risk of another Great Depression if Congress doesn't approve a $700 billion bailout package, Palin said, "Unfortunately, that is the road that America may find itself on." Palin said the answer to the financial crisis doesn't necessarily have to be the bailout plan that the Bush administration has proposed, but that it should be some form of bipartisan action to reform Wall Street. "...we know that inaction is not an option and as Senator McCain has said unless this nearly trillion-dollar bailout is what it may end up to be, unless there are amendments in Paulson's proposal, really I don't believe that Americans are going to support this and we will not support this" So let me see if I can break this down. Palin says that we're likely to be headed for another Great Depression if this $700 billion package is not enacted, and then in the next breath goes on record saying that neither McCain nor the American people are in support of it. So where does that leave us? McCain has insisted Palin is ready to take over as president, but he made no mention of including her in the meetings he wants in Washington to deal with the financial crisis. Well honestly, if Palin is going to be Vice President, she had better get used to being snubbed by her boss. Not every Vice President can be a Dick Cheney.

Sarah Palin - I realize that this next item will make it appear as if I'm dumping on America's favorite hockey mom, but honestly, I'm just reporting the news as I read it. Recent surveys have shown that Palin's popularity, while still strong, has begun to fade. Palin has been in New York this week for a series of meetings with foreign leaders, part of an effort by Republican John McCain's presidential campaign to counter criticism that the former small-town mayor lacks the experience to be vice president, let alone president in an emergency. As Palin sought to establish her credentials in world affairs, first lady Laura Bush said, Asked if she thought Palin had sufficient foreign policy experience, the first lady said: "Of course she doesn't have that. You know, that's not been her role, but I think she is a very quick study, and fortunately John McCain does have that sort of experience." Dude, that's harsh. Even the First Lady is taking swipes at Palin.

China - While China grapples with its latest tainted food crisis, the political elite are served the choicest, safest delicacies. And it's all supplied by a special government outfit that provides all-organic goods from farms working under the strictest guidelines. Knowing that their leaders do not face these problems has made some people angry. You don't say. Now that the country's most reputable dairies have been found selling baby formula and other milk products tainted with an industrial chemical that can cause kidney stones and kidney failure, many Chinese don't know what to buy. Tens of thousands of children have been sickened and four babies have died. Yup. There's no elitism going on here. For a country that claims to be socialist there certainly appears to be a lot of evidence to suggest a significant gap--one might be tempted to say chasm--between the haves and the have-nots.

Iran - Iran is nearing the ability to arm a nuclear warhead even if it insists its atomic activities are peaceful, the European Union warned. In comments prepared for delivery to the International Atomic Energy Agency's 35 board members, the EU also asserted that Iran appeared to have had a past nuclear arms program despite its denials. I'm used to remarks like this coming from the U.S. Maybe we helped with the language, because this sure sounds like stuff we'd be saying. The main international concerns focus on the country's refusal to freeze uranium enrichment despite three U.N. Security Council sanctions and its blocking of IAEA attempts to follow up on intelligence suggesting it was developing a nuclear arms program until several years ago. Iran insists its nuclear activities are geared only toward generating power. But Israel says the Islamic Republic could have enough nuclear material to make its first bomb within a year. The U.S. estimates Iran is at least two years away from that stage. I'm no expert, but seriously, how hard is it to tell if a country is developing nuclear weapons or not? If we could nail North Korea, shouldn't we be able to do the same with Iran?

North Korea - Speaking of North Korea and nuclear armament... North Korea moved closer to restarting its nuclear arms program barring U.N. inspectors from its main plutonium reprocessing plant and announcing it will reactivate the facility that provided the material for its atomic test blast. The move fed fears about a resurgent nuclear North Korea, but there also is speculation it might be motivated by negotiating strategy. Pyongyang could use the year needed to restart its sole reprocessing plant to wrest more concessions from the U.S. and others seeking to end the atomic program. The nuclear facilities were shut down and then sealed as part of a North Korean pledge to disable its nuclear program. That was meant to be a step toward eventually dismantling the complex in return for diplomatic concessions and energy aid equivalent to 1 million tons of oil under a February 2007 deal with the U.S., South Korea, China, Russia and Japan. But the accord hit a bump in mid-August when the U.S. refused to remove North Korea from its list of states that sponsor terrorism until the North accepts a plan for verifying a list of nuclear assets that the North Korean regime submitted to its negotiating partners earlier. Okay, so maybe we're not doing so well here either, but at least we know that North Korea has the capability to create nuclear weapons. My concern about Iran, as opposed North Korea, is that they don't need the economic assistance that North Korea has. See Iran has a bunch of oil which, last time I checked, commands a fair price these days.