Dogbert Dogma

Thoughts on the midterm elections:

On the national front it's hard to deny the big, sweeping change.  A Republican romp, two years after  Democrats swept into power. 

I have heard seen commentary about angry pols "voting against Democrats, not for Republicans." 

Is this supposed to make Dems feel better?  If your girlfriend dumps you for a weaselly, two bit mope who lives with his Mama, do you feel better? 

Not so much, and I'm not buying it.  What I am buying is that voters are fed up with leaders spending money like drunken sailors (an insult to sailors,  of course, who are spending their own money). 

And it appears moderation has gone the way of break dancing, with the fringe elements of both parties making the biggest gains.  The Tea Party made quite a splash, while moderates got shown the door. 


The Tea Party had a big impact, no question.  But are they for real, and who will emerge in 2012?  A more important question might be which sitting member of Congress switches to the Tea Party, and when?   The current cast of Tea Party characters needs to return to the Romper Room. 


I enjoyed the column below, which makes the case that the Tea Party movement is more about karma than anger or liberty:

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703673604575550243700895762.html

The near term election result is a couple years of gridlock.  

Americans like gridlock.  Think of the Dilbert principle - companies (voters) tend to promote their most ineffective people (politicians) quickly where they can do the least amount of harm. 

To quote Dogbert, "Leadership is nature's way of removing morons from the productive flow."

Speaking of morons, how about Tea Party candidate Carl Paladino?  Granted, there are loons in any election season, but Paladino belongs on the Mount Rushmore of wacky baby kissers. 

The guy came out of nowhere to win the New York gubernatorial primary, a business owner with no experience in politics or life outside a cave.  Then, in the span of five months, Paladino managed to:

- Threaten to "rub out" a columnist who exposed his child fathered ten years ago as a result of an extramarital affair with a co-worker
- Acknowledge sending sexually explicit, homophobic and racist emails to friends and co-workers
- Referred to New York Senator Kristin Gillibrand as (Senator Chuck) "Schumer's little girl"
- Wield a baseball bat during his concession speech and promise we haven't heard the last of him

In Illinois we had Tony Peraica, a canidate for Cook County Commissioner who was arrested for damaging his opponent's yard signs, in the middle of the night dressed in all black.  The kicker?  Peraica was arrested in the town of McCook, who's Mayor is Jeff Tobolski.  Tobolski was Peraica's opponent.

Tobolski won. 

Politics is a contact sport.