Paris Parfait

Notes from the debate

Blue Mallard train, National Railway Museum, York, England. One of the best lines of the debate was when Barack Obama corrected one of John McCain's false assertions, then quipped, "The Straight Talk Express lost a wheel on that one."

All the insta-polls showed Sen. Barack Obama clearly won last night's presidential debate in Nashville, providing precise, detailed answers and maintaining a calm, serious demeanor. Sen. John McCain seemed cranky, irritable and unfocused, looking to attack and blame, in lieu of solutions. He also lied - again - about the differences between his and Obama's tax plans. He repeated himself a few times and just generally failed to inspire confidence for voters worried about the tanking economy.

Below are a few notes scribbled during last night's presidential debate. Admittedly, I am an Obama supporter, but I didn't set out to find so many faults with McCain and so few with Obama. That's just the way the debate played out:

• McCain reminds everyone of his publicity stunt in which he "suspended" his campaign (he did not).
• He tries to link Obama with Fannie and Freddie, when his own campaign manager was a paid lobbyist for Fannie and Freddie through August 2008.
  
• McCain is attacking and blaming, rather than offering solutions.
• Obama reminds voters McCain is a deregulator and deregulation is what got our economy into this mess.
• In response to at least four questions in the debate, McCain says, "I know how to fix this" or "I know how to do that." But he offers no plans to back up his claims.
• McCain says he is a consistent reformer, against special interests and for bipartisanship. Yet lobbyists for special interests are running - and funding - his campaign. I'm just thankful he doesn't use the word "maverick."
• Twice McCain uses the America needs a "steady hand at the tiller" expression, yet he looks anything but steady. And his behaviour in the last two weeks has been decidedly erratic.
• Why does McCain keep using the term "Americans?" As in "We're Americans." Does he think any of us have forgotten where we came from?
• And why does he keep going on about earmarks? One would think since his running mate is the earmark queen, McCain would steer well clear of this subject.
• Obama talks about expanding the Peace Corps and encouraging young people to get involved in community service.
• Why does McCain keep wandering around the stage, even when Obama is speaking? And what are those hand gestures behind Obama's back supposed to mean?
• McCain claims sorting out Social Security "is not that hard." (Of course his previous idea was to privitize social security. Look how well that worked out for Wall Street).
  
• McCain keeps repeating himself. Three times he's said "Obama has not taken his party on." Maybe that's because the Democratic party doesn't need corraling, as much as the Republican party.
• McCain brings up Lieberman twice. It's obvious he was his first choice for a running mate.
• McCain tries to talk about energy sources as though he is an advocate, but Obama rightly points out that in McCain's 26 years in the Senate, he voted against alternative fuels 23 times.

On health care, McCain clearly thinks he's doing us all a favor with a $5000 payment "to go out and buy any health plan we want." Another example of how out of touch he is, thinking $5000 will get any kind of decent health insurance. Obama has a good retort: "With one hand he's giving, with the other, he's taking away." Sen. McCain would tax our health insurance "for the first time in history." Obama says the US Chamber of Commerce - which tends to favor Republicans - said taxing health insurance would lead to the unravelling of our health care.

Taxes

Why does John McCain keep misrepresenting not only Sen. Obama's tax plan, but his own?

He says: "I am not in favor of tax cuts for the wealthy."

The Tax Policy Center, in a report last month: The two candidates' tax plans would have sharply different distributional effects. Senator McCain's tax cuts would primarily benefit those with very high incomes, almost all of whom would receive large tax cuts that would, on average, raise their after-tax incomes by more than twice the average for all households. Many fewer households at the bottom of the income distribution would get tax cuts and those tax cuts would be small as a share of after-tax income.

In marked contrast, Senator Obama offers much larger tax breaks to low- and middle-income taxpayers and would increase taxes on high-income taxpayers. The largest tax cuts, as a share of income, would go to those at the bottom of the income distribution, while taxpayers with the highest income would see their taxes rise significantly.

McCain is going on again about "victory in Iraq." Still clueless about how to achieve it.

McCain clearly has a bee in his bonnet about Russia, although he denies the cold war will be revived.

He pronounces Taliban "Tally-ban." "I know I'll get Osama bin Laden," McCain says. "I'll get him no matter what. I'll do it." If McCain really knows where bin Laden is, as he has claimed on more than one occasion, isn't it treason if he won't tell the president?

McCain's disdain for Obama is obvious, especially with his condescending phrase, "That one," pointing at Obama. Obama doesn't like him either, but behaves more diplomatically than McCain.

McCain has said "my friends" at least 12 times in this debate. So annoying.

Once again, McCain fails to mention the middle class.

Obama and McCain shake hands onstage; later, when mingling with the crowd after the debate, Obama tries to shake McCain's hand. Instead, McCain directs him to shake his wife Cindy's hand. She looks like she has swallowed something particularly distasteful - especially after her statement earlier in the day that Obama was running the "dirtiest campaign in history." Ha ha.

The McCains don't linger, although Barack and Michelle Obama spend several minutes chatting with audience members and answering their questions.

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John McCain's 17 lies during the debate are refuted here. And I'm voting for "That One!"

Les chapeaux de l'Arc de Triomphe 2008

Rain and wind kept many racegoers from wearing unusual hats at the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe festivities Sunday at Hippodrome de Longchamp, Paris.

I'm not sure why these two mademoiselles (at left)  were wearing hats with evening gowns - or why they were wearing evening gowns to the Arc, particularly in cool, rainy weather.

Notice the guys in the background, drinking and ignoring the girls. "Beware of all enterprises that require new clothes." - Henry David Thoreau.

"Hope is the thing with feathers..." - Emily Dickinson.

Black and white and a glass of champagne.

Fur-trimmed.
 

A profusion of flowers and feathers.

The hat tent at Longchamp, featuring hats for sale.

More from the hat tent.

 

The hat I bought in Antwerp, created by a Dutch designer. At right is the way I started out wearing it. The photo at left is an alternative look. By the time the Arc with its heavy winds were over, the hat had turned around like this!

My friend Di at Designers Block UK very kindly has posted a little piece here about the hat.

More photos from the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe on Wednesday.

Scroll down the page for another post today. 

Olbermann talks about Palin's own "terrorist" associations

• Keith Olbermann talks about Sarah Palin's ridiculous claims and her own glass house, complete with close "terrorist" associations here.
• In Salon, Glenn Greenwald writes about "John McCain's Unprecedently Ugly Speech..."
• Sarah Palin: Serial liar.
• Fundraiser for Palin hosted by corrupt SEC-fined Wall Street executive.
• And Palin incites a trash-talking mob at a Florida campaign appearance.
• Palin, McCain inflame criminal behaviour in "mob" of their supporters. Disgraceful.

The Yes We Can banner

In case you didn't notice, there's a new banner here, reflecting my optimism that by working together, we can help elect Sen. Barack Obama as president of the United States. The "Yes We Can" fence belongs to a family in San Francisco's Inner Sunset. I'd really like to meet them, because I admire their bold, audacious statement, reflecting the courage of their conviction.

When my friend TangoBaby told me in March about the fence, I asked her to take a photo and she kindly obliged. Recently she agreed I could use the photo in a masthead. She's also written about the Obama fence. Brian Rowan, the talented IT guy who puts together my banners, has lately been working on a new batch. I asked him to use the Obama fence photo, along with other images to create two pre-election banners. He got the logo from the Obama for America website and combined it with the "Yes We Can" fence. Et voila! YES WE CAN!

Read more about Sen. Barack Obama and Sen. Joe Biden's plans for improving our country at Obama for America.

Zarkava wins the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe at Longchamp

The Aga Khan's three-year-old horse Zarkava has become the first filly to win the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe at Longchamp since 1993. Top French jockey Christophe Soumilion rode Zarkava to victory late Sunday afternoon in a thrilling race, despite the damp weather.

Christophe Soumillion and the Irish horse Zarkava post-victory at Europe's most famous flat-race. The winning purse for the Arc totaled four million euros. The Irish horse Youmzain finished second, in a repeat performance of the 2007 Arc.

Check back later for more photos of the Arc festivities.

Springsteen in Philadelphia for Obama

Bruce Springsteen appearing for Barack Obama in Philadelpia:

"Hello Philly,

"I am glad to be here today for this voter registration drive and for Barack Obama, the next President of the United States.

"I've spent 35 years writing about America, its people, and the meaning of the American Promise. The Promise that was handed down to us, right here in this city from our founding fathers, with one instruction: Do your best to make these things real. Opportunity, equality, social and economic justice, a fair shake for all of our citizens, the American idea, as a positive influence, around the world for a more just and peaceful existence. These are the things that give our lives hope, shape and meaning. They are the ties that bind us together and give us faith in our contract with one another.

"I've spent most of my creative life measuring the distance between that American promise and American reality. For many Americans, who are today losing their jobs, their homes, seeing their retirement funds disappear, who have no healthcare, or who have been abandoned in our inner cities. The distance between that promise and that reality has never been greater or more painful.

"I believe Senator Obama has taken the measure of that distance in his own life and in his work. I believe he understands, in his heart, the cost of that distance, in blood and suffering, in the lives of everyday Americans. I believe as president, he would work to restore that promise to so many of our fellow citizens who have justifiably lost faith in its meaning. After the disastrous administration of the past eight years, we need someone to lead us in an American reclamation project. In my job, I travel the world and occasionally play big stadiums, just like Senator Obama. I've continued to find, wherever I go, America remains a repository of people's hopes, possibilities and desires and that despite the terrible erosion to our standing around the world, accomplished by our recent administration, we remain, for many, a house of dreams. One thousand George Bushes and one thousand Dick Cheneys will never be able to tear that house down.

"They will, however, be leaving office, dropping the national tragedies of Katrina, Iraq and our financial crisis in our laps. Our sacred house of dreams has been abused, looted and left in a terrible state of disrepair. It needs care; it needs saving; it needs defending against those who would sell it down the river for power or a quick buck. It needs strong arms, hearts and minds. It needs someone with Senator Obama's understanding, temperateness, deliberativeness, maturity, compassion, toughness and faith, to help us rebuild our house once again. But most importantly, it needs us. You and me. To build that house with the generosity that is at the heart of the American spirit. A house that is truer and big enough to contain the hopes and dreams of all of our fellow citizens. That is where our future lies. We will rise or fall as a people by our ability to accomplish this task. Now I don't know about you, but I want that dream back, I want my America back, I want my country back.

"So now is the time to stand with Barack Obama and Joe Biden, roll up our sleeves and come on up for "The Rising."

Obama hits back at McCain-Palin for avoiding the issues

The Washington Post reports the McCain campaign's latest strategy of launching outrageous personal attacks against Barack Obama is an attempt to avoid talking about issues that matter to voters, such as the economy. Sen. Obama has shown more knowledge and understanding of the economic issues facing the country. "There's no question that we have to change the subject here," said one Republican campaign operative.

As previously noted, Palin is already going around spouting tall tales about Obama's alleged association with a "domestic terrorist." That's funny, coming from her. After all, her husband is a former member of a political party which advocates treason against the United States and secession from the Union.

And Rolling Stone has a fascinating story about McCain's life. An excerpt:

"Indeed, many leading Republicans who once admired McCain see his recent contortions to appease the GOP base as the undoing of a maverick. "John McCain's ambition overrode his basic character," says Rita Hauser, who served on the President's Foreign Intelligence Advisory Board from 2001 to 2004. But the truth of the matter is that ambition is John McCain's basic character. Seen in the sweep of his seven-decade personal history, his pandering to the right is consistent with the only constant in his life: doing what's best for himself. To put the matter squarely: John McCain is his own special interest.

"John has made a pact with the devil," says Lincoln Chafee, the former GOP senator, who has been appalled at his one-time colleague's readiness to sacrifice principle for power. Chafee and McCain were the only Republicans to vote against the Bush tax cuts. They locked arms in opposition to drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. And they worked together in the "Gang of 14," which blocked some of Bush's worst judges from the federal bench.

"On all three — sadly, sadly, sadly — McCain has flip-flopped," Chafee says. And forget all the "Country First" sloganeering, he adds. "McCain is putting himself first. He's putting himself first in blinking neon lights."

Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe weekend

Neck and neck in the Qatar Prix du Cadran at Hippodrome De Longchamp, Paris. The Group I race is 20 furlongs, the longest flat race in France. Eleven horses ran the course in the Prix du Cadran.

French jockey Christophe Soumilion pulls ahead on the Spanish owned-and-trained horse Bannaby to win the race Saturday afternoon.

On Sunday, the annual Arc events culminate with the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe race. The Aga Khan-bred three-year-old filly Zarkava is the punters' favourite. Urban Sea in 1993 was the last filly to win the race. Other strong contenders are Youmzain, Soldier of Fortune, Duke of Marmelade and Schiaparelli.

Silk banners for the Qatar Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe festivities, now underway at Hippodrome de Longchamp, Paris.

Les chapeaux

Sunday is also the day ladies attending the races will be wearing stylish hats. I bought an Italian hat in San Francisco, intending to wear it to the Arc. But on Friday in Antwerp, Belgium, my friend Di Mackey and I stumbled upon a tiny little shop full of unusual hats, all created by a Dutch designer.

Di said my face lit up when I tried on the third hat. I just remember laughing, when looking in the mirror. Because it is the kind of hat that makes a bold statement. It definitely trumped the original hat I'd intended to wear. And I'm pretty sure it can hold its own among all those stylish French chapeaux. Now if only the weather will cooperate! Rain is forecast.

Pictures tomorrow! And lots of photos and tales of Antwerp, post-races!

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Update Saturday night, Paris time: Seems Sarah Palin and John McCain are increasingly desperate, as they've moved from repeating numerous misleading statements, error-strewn claims and outright lies to nasty, slanderous patently-false statements about Sen. Barack Obama.

John McCain has no workable plans to get America back on track or solve its problems. He's clueless about the economy, health care and the war in Iraq and Afghanistan. So he and his neophyte Palin resort to trying to tear down Sen. Obama. Such despicable behaviour behooves no one, least of all the McCain campaign. Shame on them for their disgraceful, gutter-snipe politics. The American people deserve better than four more years of lies, failed policies, eroded civil liberties and lobbyist-led favours for special interests. McCain's dishonourable campaign just proves he offers more of the same rotten, self-serving government we've endured for nearly eight years now. No more!

And here's Glenn Greenwald's stark account of our "country in shambles," thanks to the Republicans.

Got questions about McCain and his ever-changing policies? Please go here for the facts.

Palin's phony populism insults us all

In Salon, Joe Conason wonders why more conservatives aren't disgusted that their party nominated a person devoid of qualifications for the vice presidency. An excerpt:

"...Why should we pretend not to notice when Gov. Palin's ideas make no sense? Having said last week that "it doesn't matter" whether human activity is the cause of climate change, she said in debate that she "doesn't want to argue" about the causes. It doesn't occur to her that we have to know the causes in order to address the problem. (She was very fortunate that moderator Gwen Ifill didn't ask her whether she truly believes that human beings and dinosaurs inhabited this planet simultaneously only 6,000 years ago.)

"Why should we ignore her inability to string together a series of coherent thoughts? As a foe of Wall Street greed and a late convert to the gospel of government regulation, along with John McCain, Palin promised to clean up and reform business. But when her programmed talking points about "getting government out of the way" and protecting "freedom" conflicted with that promise, she didn't notice.

"Why should we give her a pass on the most important issues of the day? Supposedly sharing the fears and concerns of the average families who face the burdens of mortgages, healthcare and economic insecurity, Palin simply refused to discuss changes in bankruptcy law and proved that she didn't know the provisions of McCain's healthcare plan.

"All the glaring defects so blatantly on display in her debate with Joe Biden -- and that make her candidacy so darkly comical -- would be the same if she were a hockey dad instead of a "hockey mom." In fact, the cynical attempt to foist Palin on the nation as a symbol of feminist progress is an insult to all women regardless of their political orientation.

"There was a time when conservatives lamented the dumbing down of American culture. Preservation of basic standards in schools and workplaces compelled them -- or so they said -- to resist affirmative action for women and minorities. Qualifications mattered; merit mattered; and demagogic appeals for leveling were to be left to the Democrats.

"Not anymore..." Full story here.

Meanwhile, the McCain camp is trying to subvert the course of justice in Alaska.

And McCain has an ad out repeating thoroughly debunked lies about Obama's tax plan. How sad that the best John McCain can do to try to win the presidency is lie about his opponent's tax plan, rather than put forth ideas to actually help the country. How little respect the McCain campaign has not only for the truth, but for the American people.

McCain's plan to tax our health insurance

Read more facts about McCain's self-serving plan that benefits the insurance industry - but not the subscribers - here.

And grace is apparently a quality Sarah Palin doesn't possess. All her "aw shucks, Joe Six-Pack, hockey moms" talk can't hide that.

More scenes from Chatou

A gypsy caravan at the 77th Foire Nationale aux Antiquites, a la Brocante et aux Jambons at Ile de Chatou. The brocante continues from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily through Sunday, Oct. 5.

A wooden table and decorative carriage wheel are for sale at Chatou.

An early 19th-century painting and wood and cane bedframe.

A vintage cabinet painted in bright colours.

An assortment of kitchenalia at Blandine Bavoux's Jolie Trouvaille at 10 rue de la Gaite.

Cafe au lait bowls in 1950s polka dots and patterns.

A set of measuring pitchers and decorative shelf trim at Jolie Trouvaille.

A basket of tablecloths with pattern outlines for embroidery or cross-stitching.

Pewter pitchers, a set of candlesticks and a bowl for sale at Jolie Trouvaille.

Shall we take time for tea?

A debate to remember?

White roses, Paris.

I am in Antwerp, Belgium, visiting my friend Di Mackey. I probably won't be able to watch the vice-presidential debate, given the time difference. Staying up all night and appearing zombie-like over breakfast is probably not the best way to get invited back! So I'll watch the debate online, when I return to Paris late Friday night. That is, if the McCain camp doesn't come up with some ridiculous excuse to back out of the debate!

Bill Clinton, speaking Wednesday in Florida, reminds us that the vice-presidency is an important job:

"Senator Obama has spoken a lot about how we oughta relate to the world and yes, he'll get out and travel some in the first year, we should want him to do it. But he is going to have to be really focused on fixing this economy. That means that role of the vice president in repairing quickly our relations with the rest of the world will be relatively more important in the first two years of the next presidency.

"And I am just telling you, you can talk to me or anybody else at any time in Washington and they will tell you there is nobody, nobody in the entire United States Senate that understands the political, the economic and the security challenges and opportunities of the world better than Joe Biden does. He is a superb choice."

Post-debate, will you please leave a comment here about what you thought of the exchange? Was Biden the master we expected? Did Palin spout McCain talking points and/or nonsense simply to fill the time? Did she learn about any Supreme Court decisions yet? Did she appear to understand the questions, as opposed to her interviews with Charlie Gibson and Katie Couric? Your views, please.

Voting rights for American citizens

Like most Americans abroad, I'm voting via absentee ballot. The ballot and voting literature are pictured.

Have you registered to vote? If not, please go to VoteforChange.com and follow the easy instructions to register. If you're already a registered voter, you can request an absentee ballot or find your polling location at VoteforChange.com.

Republicans continue voter suppression efforts

The Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, Rep. John Conyers has called on the McCain campaign to stop their efforts at voter suppression in Michigan and other states. Predictably, McCain has not responded.

Last week, students at Drexel University in Pennsylvania reported flyers were distributed on campus, warning students that police would be at the polls on election day. The flyers said the police would arrest "anyone with a prior offense, including unpaid parking tickets."

After a Michigan Republican county chairman said the party will challenge the voting status of homeowners facing foreclosure, Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner advised local election boards that voters whose homes are in foreclosure should not be prohibited from voting on November 4.

The Maryland State Board of Elections also affirmed that foreclosure does not exclude voters from participating in the election and Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich said voters whose homes are in foreclosure have the right to vote on Nov. 4.

Ohio Courts rule in favor of absentee ballots

The Ohio Supreme Court has upheld a provision allowing new voters to register and cast an absentee ballot on the same day. It was the second court decision validating instructions by Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner, who told counties to allow the window. The early voting period began Tuesday and both sides are mobilizing voters to take advantage of the provision.

"No Match, No Vote" in Florida

In Florida, the “no-match” law has taken effect, calling into question several thousands of voters who registered after September 8 of this year. This new measure creates an unnecessary burden on voters, simply because of a typographical error or misspelling - errors often made by the government agency, when entering voter information into computers.

More reports of student voter bullying in Virginia

Old Dominion University students who registered to vote in their college town, received questionnaires from Norfolk election officials asking for tax, driver’s license and vehicle registration information—what some are calling an attempt to exclude student voters. This comes on the heels of similar misinformation by the local election board in Blacksburg, VA.

Voter suppression attempts reported to date include Florida (No Match/No Vote); Michigan (Foreclosure black list); Wisconsin (GOP AG lawsuit to “review” voter list); Ohio (blocking one-day registration and voting window) and Indiana (discriminatory ID requirement and blocking satellite voting site in Ball State).

Voters have also been harassed in (threatening loss of financial aid to out-of-state student voters) Arizona (proof-of-citizenship requirement aimed at minorities).

As election day draws near, we can expect voter suppression efforts to increase. Please be on your guard and report any suspicious election activity to the 866-OUR-VOTE hotline. If you experience problems registering to vote or have questions related to voting, please telephone 866-OUR-VOTE. You can get more information at Election Protection's website 866OURVOTE.org. Election Protection is led by the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law.

At many polling stations, independent lawyers will be on hand for free advice, should issues arise on Election Day, Nov. 4. If you encounter a problem when attempting to vote and don't see a lawyer at the polling place to assist you, telephone 866-OUR-VOTE for advice.

As citizens of a democracy, it is our legal right - and responsibility - to vote for our government and issues that affect us all. Don't let others try to intimidate you or suppress your right to vote.

McCain-Palin campaign news

John McCain is in angry, combative mode in an interview with the Des Moines Register editorial board. McCain was questioned about Palin's qualifications, whether or not he understands the health needs of Americans and his campaign.

Meanwhile, Sarah Palin couldn't name a single newspaper or news source she reads, when questioned by Katie Couric of CBS News. In the run-up to Thursday night's vice-presidential debate, the Boston Globe questions why rape victims were made to pay for hospital emergency-room rape kits and exams, during Palin's tenure as mayor.