"Rock The Vote"
Debate — That 70s Show

In a misguided attempt to rid our society of every vestige of "discrimination," activists are using antidiscrimination laws to erode civil liberties such as free speech, the exercise of religion, and freedom of association.…

Senator Zell Miller leaves no doubt that he believes his own Democrat Party is badly out of step with most of the country. He outlines key positions that can again make the party relevant for the entire nation. From tax cuts to welfare, gun control to the environment, the arts to education, immigration to terrorism, he identifies values that make sense to a growing majority of Americans.

In a society that espouses equal opportunity we still have a racially identifiable group of educational have-nots – Black and Hispanic students whose opportunities in life will almost inevitably be limited by their inadequate education. Scattered across the country are excellent schools getting terrific results with high-needs kids. These rare schools share a distinctive vision of what great schooling looks like and are free of many of the constraints that compromise education in traditional public schools.

Helps men make the right decisions about what to do and say in every situation that counts. Peter Post, great grandson of Emily Post, distills the essential information men need for all the important roles they play in life. Organized into three parts – "Daily Life," "Social Life," and "On the Job." A reasoned, succinct approach to manly manners and the benefits of civility.

Bill and Hillary Clinton don't want you to read this book. Bill has spent his days since the presidency aggressively defending his legacy, and Hillary plans to run for president on it, and now, unfortunately for them, Rich Lowry uses sound fact and shocking detail to dispel the myth of the Clinton legacy once and for all

Turow carefully discusses each issue – from the possible execution of an innocent person to whether execution is a deterrent. This measured weighing of the facts will be most valuable to those who are on the fence. They will find an objective look at both sides of this critical but highly charged debate.

This gripping account explodes the fashionable myth of "Islamic tolerance" and refutes the half-truths and distortions about jihad concocted by American Muslim groups and their allies. Spencer proves the traditional Islamic concept of jihad does sanction – even require – violence against non-Muslims. While many Muslims today ignore these exhortations to violence, radical Islamists are using them successfully to recruit members worldwide. …

It started sometime in the late 1960s. This was the beginning of the end of America as we knew it. Up until the 'Summer of Love', there were children and then there were adults. The adults ran things, acted responsibly and were respected by children who obeyed and tried to emulate them.

This was before the 'Generation Gap' replaced the bridge which had connected the old and the young, resulting in a devastating case of role-reversal. Faced with the admonition that no one under 30 was to be trusted, parents ceded their roles as leaders and shapers of opinion to their children, and donned the love beads of same.

Nearly everyone's family album contains some embarrassing photo of Aunt Josie with a peace medallion or Uncle Harry with a Nehru jacket. Older celebrities also did not want to be on the wrong side of the Gap, and they began popping up everywhere on 'cool' TV shows like Laugh-In, dressed in fab gear and spouting hip lines like; "You bet your sweet bippy!" and "Here comes da judge." Who can forget presidential candidate Richard Nixon nervously asking, "Sock it to me?" Some, like Phyllis Diller even made a career out of this cringe-inducing shtick, but most adults, excepting liberals, soon regained their senses and returned to acting their ages.

I was reminded of this phenomenon last week while watching the "Rock the Vote" Democrat presidential debate. Deep in the heart of Liberal Land, eight candidates fell all over each other trying to look, act and respond to the questions of the Harvard crowd in the coolest of fashions. The result was what one would expect, only more so.

Like the 70s themselves, the experience was an equal mix of comedy and pathos. The only thing keeping it from total farce was the absence of Dick Gephardt, the only man in America who actually admits to being the son of the proverbial milkman. He would have been as out of place with this audience as was Rueben on the Partridge Family bus. Not that any of the rest of them didn't remind you of that middle-aged, female teacher who tried to do the funky chicken at your sophomore hop.

First there were the clothes. This was Hah-vad after all, so five of the eight men wore suits but removed the jackets to demonstrate their willingness to take a walk on the wild side. The other two, Dennis Kucinich and Wesley Clark, wore black turtlenecks in a defiant tribute to that avant garde moment in the 60s (think Illya Kuryakin in "The Man From U.N.C.L.E") when that attire was deemed acceptable in high-tone circles. The look made Kucinich appear even more insignificant than usual while it seemed to render Clark amorphous.

The debate itself was surprisingly animated while the videos from the each of the candidates' camps were excruciatingly bad, especially those that attempted to pander woefully to the hip-hop set, recalling memories of Sebastian Cabot (Mr. French) singing "It Ain't Me Babe" in the 60s.

The questions that got the most press coverage concerned reefer madness, binge drinking and casual-sexy fun hookups—just what the parents of a Harvard undergrad might expect for the $150,000 price tag. One such question from an Ivy League coed was:

I'd be curious to find out, if you could pick one of your fellow candidates to party with, which you would choose. But keeping in mind, partying isn't just, you know, who do you think can shake their groove thing. I mean, we're talking, who's going to be loyal to you? Who is going to stand by your side? If you get sick, who's going to hold your hair back? There's more. There's more to it. Who's going to be a team player, you know, if you—imagine if you were single again. If you see a cutie across the room... who's going to be your wing man? Who's going to take one for the team?
Replying in what can only be described as a "Mr. Furley" moment, holy Joe Lieberman said, "I hope my wife understands this. I'd like to party with the young lady who asked that question." The camera did not record the young lady's reaction but if it was anything akin to mine, it wasn't pretty.

Next came a question via email that was eagerly anticipated by the audience—and please note the wording; "Which of you are ready to admit to having used marijuana in the past?" The results? Yes: Dean, Edwards and Kerry. No: Kucinich, Lieberman and Sharpton with Carol Moseley Braun abstaining, so to speak. Clearly this is not your father's presidential campaign.

Truly representative of the throwback quality of the whole evening though, was this from the Peter Pan-ish Dennis Kucinich:

The question that was asked earlier by the young woman about why would young people want to pick any particular candidate, and in my case it's because the same passion that I felt at age 20 about changing the world, that fire in the heart, that fire in the spirit, that same willingness to try to change it all resides in me right now. It's that rebellious spirit that doesn't accept the status quo, that's ready to take a vision and take it to the farthest place.
In the case of these Democrat presidential candidates, that place would appear to be Never Never Land. Right on, dude.