But when you actually stand at the Brandenburger Tor and look down towards that Prussian War Memorial you can really…

There's quite a difference.

Juan Cole has a fairly informative post on the surge .

and Cole has certainly had a more reliable track record (and a more in depth understanding) on Iraq than the current GOP candidate.

As many others have noted:

what actually seems to have happened was…

Barry Obambi

The point at which Bremner lost the argument.

I do appreciate James coming here, but his most recent posts might as well have been read off a script. The current conservative talking point on Obama is "but he opposed the surge!".

Well, okay, let's be generous and give…

Isn't the Rex who was firstup on nine to noon this morning – former NZ First staffer, currently in Aussie – a PAS person? The name was familiar.

Yes. Rex Widerstrom has been arguing the toss online since the Usenet glory days.

Bob Jones – what a w*nker. He sets his old mate up and then backs away from any meaningful conversation with Winstons brother over the Spencer Trust on 9-noon this morning RNZ.

Isn't the Rex who was firstup on nine to noon this morning – former NZ First staffer, currently…

Bob Jones – what a w*nker. He sets his old mate up and then backs away from any meaningful conversation with Winstons brother over the Spencer Trust on 9-noon this morning RNZ.

Winston is a liar (found to be in court) and running scred, love it…

Barry Obambi

The point at which Bremner lost the argument.

I just think some of the hype around is a bit ... overly optimistic.

"Rome – The Musical" closed at Circa last night. I was great. Congratulations to all involved. The finale has Octavius (Augustus) taking on the mantle of…

The wise cynics amongst us [e.g. LegBreak], amongst us will gladly point out that Obama is full of platitudes, etc.

I've never pretended to be wise.

Well, whatever: he is an order of magnitude better than anyone else on offer.

Couldn't agree more.

He is an intelligent, articulate and sincere…

Ford owns Mazda, after all.

But not Toyota which is killing them all and manufactures in the US. Honestly, the US car companies have been bleeding so long, it's really just a matter of time. I'd imagine a major merger, likely Ford-Chrysler could be on the cards, in the same…

Absolutely, i've been trading all my life, i like a good shop i do.

Not all businesses are geared for efficiencies in keeping waste (spending) down.They hide and compensate these inefficiencies by healthy revenue collection.

Business is not an exact science yet,…

I can't agree more. Why terrify a generation of Iranian citizens.Let the bridges start being…

How exactly do you reduce government income (i.e. tax receipts) without reducing government spending, again?

To paraphrase a campaign we are spending money on "It's not what we're spending, it's how we are spending".
Until someone comes up with a way to run something that isn't a business like a…

The wise cynics amongst us [e.g. LegBreak], amongst us will gladly point out that Obama is full of platitudes, etc. Well, whatever: he is an order of magnitude better than anyone else on offer. He is an intelligent, articulate and sincere person. We need him. Plain and simple.

I was…

http://pictureyear.blogspot.com/2008/06/pictures-from-train.html

America as personified by Bush – morally bankrupt and…

That, along with 'Obambi', is nothing more than the phantom twitchings of a severed dittohead.

Ha, if 'Barry' has got James squirming like that he's gotta be running strong....

I imagine the Ford loss is all down to the bad financial times

Renault just posted a net income for the first six months of the year of 2.2 billion dollars.

http://www.boycottford.com/

How exactly do you reduce government income (i.e. tax receipts) without reducing government spending, again?

Er... improve economic performance? That's what's been happening in the last few years, no? There was an increase in the tax bracket for people earning over 60k a year when Labour first came in, and…

Even Katie Couric had a go at him on this topic the other night.

Wow, didn't she, like, win a Pulitzer for smiling purty?

I really hate cheap shots at Jimmy Carter. They bring Teh Stupid.
That is all.

That, along with 'Obambi', is nothing more than the phantom twitchings of a severed dittohead.

Well, yes he was — by people for whom the British Tories, the Australian Liberals and the NZ National Party might as well be Maxist-Leninists on crack.

Comparing the political compass readings for US and NZ politicians/parties can be very enlightening in this regard. It can't be said often enough:…

Still, with a weak opponent and the wind very much at his back, Obama has to be strongly favored to win. But if he implements his stated tax policy, we will get a very sharp lesson in the damage tax increases cause

Well, James, I certainly hope McCain's getting slightly…

McCain is running a lousy campaign (no surprises there)

No , he's a lousy candidate. He doesn't seem to know where anything is. He simply wouldn't be credible in most western democracies.

and Barry Obambi is such a lightweight he must need 20 lbs of lead in each shoe to…

He stands a very good chance of making Jimmy Carter look like one of the three wise men.

I really hate cheap shots at Jimmy Carter. They bring Teh Stupid.

That is all.

http://www.ibdeditorials.com/IBDArticles.aspx?id=301702713742569

McCain is running a lousy campaign (no surprises there) and Barry Obambi is such a lightweight he must need 20 lbs of lead in each shoe to stop him floating off into the…

It's worth reading an earlier and related piece he did in relation to Obama's different approach, compared with the other candidates – Dem and Republican, on the issue of negotiations with "rogue states". It's here. Also, did you…

I remember when Obama was elected to the Senate – he was lauded as the most liberal of politicians at the time (at least by US standards)

Well, yes he was — by people for whom the British Tories, the Australian Liberals and the NZ National Party might as well…

Obviously McCain is – now moaning about media bias.

The story on Midday Report was simply bizarre — I had no idea that Berlin was some kind of sacred ground where only Presidents were allowed to open their mouths. But just to add insult to injury, listening to McCain holding…

Blair didn't drive a car all the time he was PM.

Not so surprising..I'd be surprised if many ministers or corporate high fliers drove in the UK. "The Car", complete with driver, is a way of life in many large cities. Few captains of industry or politicans drive in Asia…

Having correctly named the (actually global, not just European) view that the US and it's imperial ambitions are as much part of the problem as the solution, he segues nicely into the usual US-centric drivel, naming a range of threats and…

someone needs to do a similar venn diagram for Labour and its acolytes and their scandals, and those of their support parties

I'm sure it'd be fun, but really ... I think you'll find no one was tortured or died, dozens of judicial officers weren't illegally sacked for political reasons,…

One of the good things about NZ is how our politicians are more connected to real life and do drive cars, have mobile phones, travel on public aircraft next to ordinary people, and so on.

someone needs to do a similar venn diagram for Labour and its acolytes and their scandals, and those of their support parties

Easy enough.

Substitute G.W. Bush with Tony Blair, Dick Cheney with Gordon Brown, Alberto Gonzales with Lord Goldsmith, Karl Rove with Tom Kelly and anglicise other names on…

Now I'm not so sure.

You have to admit it is a very smart campaign he is running. Going to Afghanistan,…

Ironically, using a phone yourself isn't even particularly required to be President,

You don't carry a wallet, you don't use the phone, yes. There's a story about a US president (I forget which) who made his first call after leaving office and thought there was something wrong with the line…

Where "anything" includes "someone who cannot use the internet", then, no, it isn't. I'm sorry, but in this digital age, anyone who can't be arsed to learn how to use email is not qualified to be the most powerful person in the world. And his age is no excuse.

Ironically,…

someone needs to do a similar venn diagram for Labour and its acolytes and their scandals, and those of their support parties

Go on then, Gavin.

someone needs to do a similar venn diagram for Labour and its acolytes and their scandals, and those of their support parties

That is so apples and elephants.

Incidentally, I don't think McCain is as big a dunce as you think.

He is old.

Reallllllly old.

But hey, anything's better than Bush ain't it?

Where "anything" includes "someone who cannot use the internet", then, no, it isn't. I'm sorry, but in this digital age, anyone who can't be…

The outrage would at least be mitigated by the prospect of no campaign ads.

When was the last time an American President spoke to a rally of 200,000 people outside of America, let alone a candidate.

Or in America, for that matter.

As for the platitudes (demagoguery?) charge, it was never going to be a speech full of policy detail (neither was the Kennedy…

In many ways Obama is a reaction to the cronyism and corruption of the Bush administration, so my biggest concern for Obama is he is being elected as a change candidate from an electorate…

Worth checking out diplo's Mad Decent website as well.

I just can’t get past thinking it’s all platitudes.

It's not all platitudes. Obama's July 15 Foreign Policy speech. (36 min.) His most important speech so far, that I've seen.

Nouvelle Vague do a pretty cool lounge version of Guns of Brixton.

I have a weird feeling that Nouvelle Vague's version has influenced Calexico's. Hmm...

I rather liked it, especially how turns the Black Maria from a paddywagon into a dark reference to the Virgin.

It's concerning that the media completely adore him and yet McCain is still within spitting distance of him.

it is still hard to credit that Americans…

As for Obama, sorry but I just can’t get past thinking it’s all platitudes. Perhaps it’s the accent that does that to me.