Posted on 10/12/2012 11:30:25 AM PDT by CaroleL
Vice President Joe Biden's behavior at last night's debate proved one thing: Team Obama has given up trying to win over independent voters and is betting it all on their base. Mr. Biden's laughter, dismissive comments and smirks whenever Congressman Paul Ryan (R-Wisconsin) spoke was obviously an effort to placate those who react the same way when someone dares to point out President Obama's failures and offers alternatives.
So why did Mr. Biden choose to concentrate on appeasing his party's base less than a month before an election most experts say will be decided by independent voters?
Of course he had an energy gap to make up for after President Obama's lackluster performance in last week's presidential debate. But some aggressive posturing and occasional eye contact with his opponent could have made up that ground.
No, the condescending laughter was all about connecting with those who believe ridicule is not only acceptable in political discourse; it should be their candidates’ first weapon of choice (especially when there is no intellectual defense for your record).
Saul Alinsky the founder of modern community organizing and an inspiration to President Barack Obama wrote in his Rules for Radicals that "Ridicule is man's most potent weapon. It is almost impossible to counteract ridicule. Also it infuriates the opposition, which then reacts to your advantage."
While humor has a place in American politics (see Ronald Reagan's promise not to use his opponent's youth and inexperience against him) and can be quite effective in winning votes, ridicule has only limited reach. The mocking tone in so many of President Obama's speeches and the disdainful laughter from Vice President Biden last night only work beyond the already persuaded if, as Mr. Alinsky says, the opposition gets infuriated and reacts.
What Mr. Alinksy in his day and Team Obama in ours did not consider is the level of poise and maturity displayed by Congressman Ryan last night and the distaste many American voters have for the childish tactics of Obama & Company.
Rather than fall into the trap of a failed 1960's radical, Team Romney seems more in tune with the much more successful Mahatma Gandhi who said, ""First they ignore you, then they ridicule you, then they fight you, then you win."
They may be trying to play to their base, such as it is and insane as it is....I guess that would be easy enough - just hate everything not associated with living in your parents’ basement and owing a forture to student loans for your $200K counseling degree.
My guess, however, is that now they are playing to the one group that has their noses firmly affixed up their arses - the United States Mainstream Media.
Here is a post from over at DU. They consider Biden to be beyond awesome:
“The epic performance last night by Vice President Joe Biden is destined to go down in history as one of the finest debate showings ever. Three things conspired against Congressman Paul Ryan: the truth, a debate opponent well prepared with facts and a ‘tude, and a debate moderator that was skilled and educated enough not to put up with any bullshit. This perfect storm left Ryan flopping on the beach like a fish, mouth gawping for air, completely knocked out of his zone.
It’s not easy to debate someone who tells lie after lie after lie. You risk spending your entire time refuting the lies without ever getting your own message out. Last night, Joe Biden taught us how to do it. He started out grinning whenever Ryan lied. By the end, he was openly laughing and, in what was almost like a live-tweeting of his own debate, responded in the background to each lie that rolled out of Ryan’s mouth with a refutation so that, when it was his own turn, he could actually deliver his message.
He made Ryan look foolish on foreign policy. He made Ryan look foolish on domestic policy. He made Ryan look almost irreligious on the question of abortion. And the entire time, he was openly derisive of Ryan when he lied. It was a pitch perfect performance.”
The wasted opportunity to appeal to independents even a little bit will come back to haunt them.
Vice President Joe Biden’s behavior at last night’s debate proved one thing: Team Obama has given up trying to win over independent voters and is betting it all on their base. Mr. Biden’s laughter, dismissive comments and smirks whenever Congressman Paul Ryan (R-Wisconsin) spoke was obviously an effort to placate those who react the same way when someone dares to point out President Obama’s failures and offers alternatives.
The response of the left to Biden’s rude behavior on the nationally televised debate is/was predictiable. They love it and insanely believe the rest of us love their insanity, arrogance, and rude behavior.
With over 70 years of life and at least 60 of those years watching liberals lie and feel superior. Dacades ago, I came to the conclusion, that they are all mentally unstable and there is no cure for them.
They all suffer from Illusory Superiority Responses. Often this cognitive bias increases with years of faux education and their illusory social status in their increasing unstable/immature minds.
Illusory Superiority Response is a cognitive bias that causes people to overestimate their positive qualities and abilities and to underestimate their negative qualities, relative to others. This makes them under estimate real winners like Ronald Reagan.
So they label anyone, who dares to challenge their insane/rude Illusory Superiority Responses, as red necked, stupid, knuckle draggers rather than listen to what we have learned over the years, decades and centuries from history.
With the instant reality, we now have with the internet, Fox and social nets, the left wing mediots are losing their ability to lie and cover their beloved Obama’s/Biden’s unstable responses.
The rabid/mentally unstable hard core liberals love the Illusory Superiority responses of Obama/Biden/Pelosi/Reed and others.
However, the instant and nationwide exposed insanity of their Illusory Superiority responses is killing them with the independent voters.
Very interesting, thank you.
Well, except that Biden's performance didn't really play that well in the NY Times or the Washington Post. Both of those outlets questioned (in front page stories) how Biden's smirking and aggressiveness would appear to independents. Certainly, the base loved it. It's not that I don't think the lapdogs in the media aren't part of the Dem base, I do - I just think they took a step back after the first debate and realized they may not have their finger on the pulse of mainstream America.
Bye-den’s performance seemed to have been planned and rehearsed, a concoction of the wizards at the White Hut well versed in Saul Alinsky, and Joe performed like a good dummy puppet.
Okay...can see your point.... my personal belief is that Obama is going to be gasping for air under the Tsunami of pissed off Americans voting his ass back to Hawaii or Chicago, or Kenya...wherever the hell he came from.
If it was one of our guys who acted like that, most of us would be absolutely appalled. I was appalled at Joe Wilson’s calling Obama a liar. That didn’t win anybody to our side.
I’ve just never ascribed to the theory that nice guys finish last. Most of the SOB’s I have known in life have eventually gotten their comeuppance. Being nice doesn’t mean you have to be a pushover - Romney bears that out.
Mary Ann Marsh was on FNC and she parroted the talking point that Biden accomplished his mission which was to rally the base. She denied that his purpose was to sway independents. Of course, we know that’s malarkey, but it’s what they have to settle for.
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