Dear Editor:
I have been reflecting upon my experience serving as a Delegate to the Republican National Convention. What I witnessed in Minnesota was something that will certainly go down in history. Not only did I get to watch the first woman in history accept the Republican nomination for Vice President, I also watched John McCain rally his party and ask all Americans to take a look at what he has to offer.
In a startling contrast to Barack Obama’s acceptance speech in which he listed a multitude of proposed government spending, McCain proclaimed, “All you ever asked of government is to stand on your side, not in your way.” This statement made me immediately think of President Ronald Reagan. Reagan’s message of less government and more individual freedom forever changed our nation for the better. As a conservative, I applauded McCain’s message. As a Republican, I rejoiced in the fact that our new standard bearer would take our party “back to basics.” As an American I merely breathed a sigh of relief.
While recognizing that millions of Americans are enduring hardships due to our economy, McCain delivered a positive message. Perhaps the most positive of his statements was, “Nothing is inevitable here. We’re Americans, and we never give up. We never quit. We never hide from history. We make history.” I have to tell you that the crowd went wild at that line. This is the John McCain that we hoped would lead us to victory and to a better nation.
Meanwhile, Governor Sarah Palin delivered something that I have never seen in person. She presented a flawless speech with unparalleled charm and tenacity. I remember being concerned for the structural integrity of the stadium during her speech because the crowd was in frenzied. Sarah Palin possess a certain charisma with which most Americans can identify. As a mother of five, small business owner, former mayor, and now governor of Alaska, she is in a word: real. This real woman has taken on some major issues and fought for the people she represented. She is the perfect running mate for a man like John McCain. Just as McCain has fought partisan duplicity and corruption in Washington, Palin has fought for the people of Alaska.
Clearly, this election is different from any in the past. We see some very different candidates. Different from candidates of the past, but also very different from each other. It seems to me that a person who desires a whole lot more government should go ahead and vote for Obama-Biden. If you would rather empower people than bureaucrats, then a vote for McCain-Palin would suit you. I would submit that the McCain-Palin ticket is the real opportunity for change. We can finally bring Washington to its senses. Spending cuts will be made a priority. Most importantly, we can finally work toward getting government out of our way.
Sincerely,
Michael A. Geppi
Delegate, Republican National Convention
Chairman, Harford County Republican Party
Anyone interested in volunteering for the McCain-Palin campaign should contact Geppi at mikegeppi@comcast.net or 410-302-2284.
Mike,
I disagree diametrically with almost every word you wrote. I thought Palin was screeching, saccharine, and — like every other speaker who wasn’t McCain — played to same base, sarcastic, small minded politics that the nat’l GOP has been shelling out for years.
But what I really want to know is, did you and Steve Wright room together?
You expect the american people to fall for this ”Rhertoric” (8) years of bush & a destroyed economy. a (2) front war. American lives wasted for nothing. pulling out of Iraq. with no apparent gain’s.
Al Qaeda will take it back in (6) months
matt, if you agreed with anything Mike said, I would be worried 🙂
I still contend that Huckabee was the best speaker of the convention.
Obama spoke about the issues–the issues that Americans should be more concerned about rather than what the nominees look like. McCain made a bunch of broad and generalized comments to avoid the issues. Palin spent a good chunk of her time bashing Obama. Since then McCain’s campaign has been crying about Obama attacking Palin. If you’ve been paying close attention, he hasn’t attacked her yet–not even the lipstick comment, which was about McCain. The old man needs to focus more on the issues rather than dirty little games. It’s very insulting that he thinks we’re that stupid.
I do not see how anyone could argue that she is not a great speaker- regardless of your political views….
kloh, there is no way in my mind that the lipstick comment wasn’t intentional. He paused for effect after the first part of the phrase, knowing he would get a reaction.
I have no problem with it, it’s politics. But his speech writers would not put that in there with Palin’s speech and hockey mom comment still in everyone’s mind unless it was intentional. Just like when Russ Carnahan came out earlier that same day when introducing Biden and said, “There’s no way you can dress up that record, even with a lot of lipstick”. It’s all coordinated, as is the expected outrage response from the right.
The Pubs are being smart right now, and the Dems are falling for it. Those that were already going to vote for Obama can just dismiss that latest stuff, but this election comes down to the undecided voters out there, and Obama’s comments can only hurt, they will not help. He needs to stick with issues and be consistent to get back on track. But with his fundraising in August dropping to the level it did, his campaign is scrambling a bit.
Personally, I haven’t heard any thing from either candidate on the issues that are important to me that would make me want to vote for either. I’m prepared right now to vote for gridlock.
THIS JUST IN!
Mike Geppi, former Harford County Councilman and current cChairman of the Harford County Republican Party, will be facing off with Democratic County Councilman Dion Guthrie tonight at 7:00 p.m. live on Harford Cable Network.
Tune in at 7:00 p.m. on Comcast Channel 21 or Armstrong Channel 7.
What are the rules? Steel Cage match? No Disqualification? Or how about a lumberjack match? Wait, that may give Geppi the edge, especially if they are Alaskan lumberjacks.
Mike is going to prove just how unsmart he is.
Who cares whether the pig comment was intentional? I heard WAY worse from Republicans when Hillary was in the race. In a much publicized forum, John McCain CHUCKLED when one of his supporters said of Hillary- ” So how are we gonna beat the B*TCH?”- he never refuted or showed one iota of disapproval. And didn’t Palin say that Hillary should stop “whining”? So Sarah needs to put on her big girl pants and prove that she is tough enough for the job. But the truth is- the dems didn’t make the connection between pitbull lipstick and pig lipstick- the Mccain campaign DID. Why? Because it distracts from the real issues. Methinks they doth protest too much- it’s their only game plan.
Democrats, Independents, Republicans…..who cares.
Let’s reflect on the past few days. In my opinion, the immediate priority is to calm markets and prevent a crash, and to do so it would help to recall or reflect on how we got here.
We are not living through some crisis of capitalism, unless policy blunders make it so ? These politically convenient riffs do nothing to reassure the public.The current panic (banking industry and stock market) is the ugly aftermath of the credit mania that took flight in the middle years of this decade. Economic historian Charles Kindleberger knew (Panics, Manias, and Crashes), financial manias throughout history have shared one trait: the excessive expansion of credit. This bubble was no different. The Federal Reserve kept interest rates too low for too long, creating a subsidy for debt and a global commodity price spike. The excess liquidity and capital flows spurred and became the fuel for the wizards on Wall Street and in mortgage-finance who created new financial instruments that in turn fueled the housing bubble. As long as it lasted, nearly everyone inhaled the euphoria of rising asset prices and soaring profits. Normal risk assessment gave way to the excesses that always attend manias.
Case closed!