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First, thanks for not joining the mob who insist this Q&A means he doesn't know the price of gas. I can't imagine how all these otherwise reasonable people can convince themselves McCain doesn't know gas is just shy of $5/gallon.
I suppose I can understand your anger if you want to read his statement as meaning he doesn't think it matters that he doesn't have to pump his own gas. But is that what he really meant? I have no idea. What else could he have meant? Maybe it meant that he doesn't remember what the price was the last time he pumped his own gas. That is, before the Secret Service protection went into place and he wasn't allowed to. Was it $2.75? Was it $3.50? $3.25 Does *that* matter? I sure don't think so, and wouldn't fault him for that.
Like I said, I understand why you're angry, but I really think we need to rise above all this parsing, re-parsing, interpretation, and projection. We don't know what he meant. Can we interpret in a way that reflects poorly on him? Sure. Can we interpret it in a way that suggests he's basically a "regular guy" in the backseat of a car on the way to the airport having a phone conversation with someone while distracted by something else? Probably.
If we don't want to have folks misinterpreting statements the candidate we support might make about RFK's assassination, mid-westerners taking comfort in hunting and church, or discussions about journalists while on a rope line shaking hands with a crowd, maybe we shouldn't do it either.
When you've got a driver and are not dealing with it on any kind of real level, how can you know whether or how it matters? He doesn't. He doesn't walk in our shoes and hasn't.
This is a very real problem with the 'let the market sort it out' theory. We've tried in California to set CAFE standards higher than the Federal minimum and had the Bush administration hammer us for it. That's not right. It's not right that we now are hammered with some of the highest gas prices in the country, or that those gas prices are now driving up food prices nationwide, and all the while speculators are laughing all the way to the banks.
So what was in his head matters less to me than the message it sent, which was that he's completely out of touch with what the 'rank and file' are dealing with.
This isn't the first time he's glossed over a real issue with the 'it doesn't matter' line, either. I don't want someone telling me it doesn't matter that we have troops in Iraq for 100 years because they're not being killed. Hell yes, it matters. Those troops in Iraq have families and we're paying for them to be there instead of home protecting this country.
Iraq was a botched attempt to control Middle East oil. Now Bush is trying it with Iran, and McCain is supporting it.
Hell yes, this stuff matters.
The tendency is always to take what the other guy said and interpret in the way that best supports our opinion. I get that. I just wish it weren't the way these things always go. We're always hearing these things through a filter, looking for triggers that support our conclusions.
Honestly, I would have probably let it pass, had I not already let the Bush surprise at gas going to $4/gallon pass, and had I not let the "it doesn't matter how long troops stay in Iraq" comment pass.
Let's accept your argument for a minute, that it was just a dropped comment with no meaning.
What DOES matter?
"I think [Orange County, CA is] very important. Electorally, Orange County has always been a bastion of Republican support. Obviously, that has been diluted somewhat by the dynamic growth of Orange County, but it’s still a very important place. It’s also a very important place for fundraising...I intend to compete and win in California."
"Sen. Obama proposed an amendment during the debate on the immigration issue which would have ended the temporary worker program – which would have killed the legislation."
"My credentials and record, including my support of the military – including the fact that there is pro-life, small-business, pro-military sentiment in the Hispanic community – I’m confident I will do very well with the Hispanic vote. As I say, Sen. Obama has not been involved in their issues. He attempted to kill the entire immigration bill at the request of the labor unions."
"Q. Do you think you can gain Congressional support to end to both [corn-based ethanol] subsidy and the tariff? A. Sure....Americans are very aware of this special-interest influence in our nation’s capital. They want change that’s the right kind of change, not the wrong kind of change that Sen. Obama represents. He voted for the subsidies, he support the farm bill. I opposed it. He voted for the energy bill that was a grab bag of goodies for the special interests. I voted against it."
"Q. When you talk about lifting the ban on offshore drilling, do you include California in that? A. Sure. Surely you don’t think I would exempt California. But I’ve made it very clear that it’s up to the states. States will make decisions. Texas and Louisiana made the decisions that they did. The governor of Florida, and recent polling, show that the people of Florida support such a move."
that is all.
Now I know that's easy to say when you live in New York City with a glut of mass transit - and God bless everyone with hybrids that drastically reduce emission output - but before we personify our frustrations in politicians, we need to evaluate the whole picture and the part we all play. Heck, our tax dollars are paying to fill McCain's tank anyway. But when someone's sitting in bumper to bumper traffic on Flatbush Avenue in a giant SUV pumping out poison, I think there's enough blame to go around.
I remember the message to the older generation in the 70s was "what are you doing to the earth we are going to inherit?" But what have we become with iPods, cell phones, 100 hundred cable channels that we watch while also using a laptop to go online? We are using more energy than ever! Maybe if people rethink the size and type of vehicle they drive, or reconsider some trips, the overall picture will change.