Amusement

[myrgthful]

Given McCain's choice of Alaska Governor Sarah Palin (female) for his running mate, Obama's personal spokesman, Bill Burton, had this to say:

"Experience is being taken off the table considering you're putting someone within a heartbeat of the presidency with the thinnest foreign policy experience in history."
Wait a minute... Palin is just the

Comments

[jatg]

That's rich coming from the Obama camp, calling someone's experience into question.
While he has been campaigning the last 2.5 years of the 3 years he was actually a US senator she's been GOVERNING.

Heck...considering Alaska borders two other countries...she's also already got more foreign policy cred than Obama and Biden put together!

[bernmarx]

They're not calling Palin's experience into question, they're saying that the RNC should cut out the ads with HR Clinton questioning Obama's experience. (And actually, she's only been governing anything larger than a town for a little under two years.)

Neither Obama nor Palin have very much experience; I reckon they're about even. Both Biden and McCain have tons of experience; I reckon they're about even. There's an argument to be had that Obama is the Presidential candidate and Palin is "just" the Veep, but coming off one of the more powerful Veeps in history, and considering McCain's age, I think it's fair to consider her as a potential president.

[jatg]

Sure, both Biden and McCain have experience...but then there's the matter of being RIGHT. Biden has proven himself WRONG time and time again with his foreign policy cred. Sure, he's got years of experience...but they're years of him being wrong and inserting his foot in his mouth

[bernmarx]

I disagree with nearly all of this comment, but I doubt a discussion would be fruitful.

[bernmarx]

Oh, and if you're going to say that Alaska borders Russia by virtue of the vast wastlands they share, you might as well say Delaware borders Europe. ;)

[jatg]

3000 + miles as the crow flies with an ocean between Rhode Island and saaay France vs 53 miles of the Bering Strait that separates Alaska from Russia certainly puts the latter being more neighborly than the former.

[bernmarx]

About as many people live in Russia on the west side of the Bering Strait as live in Alaska on the east side. Stick with Canada, drop Russia from the equation, and you'll look more credible.

[jatg]

The number of people that live in a specific area has jack diddley to do with designated and agreed upon borders.

Borders are borders, regardless of populations on either side.

[bernmarx]

Mh. Unconvinced.

[myrgthful]

The population has been climbing on that part of Russian territory, with industry increasing, and fishing becoming stronger, if I remember some National Geographic article right.

Speaking of which... Alaska deals with a lot of shipping traffic with Russia. In their ports, and in the Bering Strait itself. The Russians are particularly looking to claim parts of the Arctic Circle (for resources) and to lay claim to a transpolar shipping-route. (In competition with Norway and Canada) Even more than that, the Governor of Alaska must expend some amount of time protecting the interests of Alaskan fishing and other seagoing ships. That makes for a certain amount of natural interaction with Russian, Japanese and other crews which operate in the area.

Then again... Chicago has its own contingent of Russian mafia. Maybe Obama has had to handle certain issues diplomatically himself? :-p

___

By the way... Sorry I took you too seriously that last time, a couple of weeks ago. I didn't know it was tongue-in-cheek. ;-)

[bernmarx]

From a shipping perspective, Chicago is the end point of the St Lawrence Seaway, so as a State Senator for Illinois, Mr Obama would have gotten some experience interacting with Canada. One major issue right now for the Great Lakes area is how the lake water is to be used; while Michigan (hence Gov Granholm) is at the center of that, all the states and provinces (i.e., Ontario) bordering the Lakes are part of that discussion