Random thoughts: Serbia, John McCain, John Kerry, Hillary vs. Obama

Serbs torch US Embassy

Over 150,000 Serbs took to the streets in Belgrade yesterday to protest the US-led recognition of their former province of Kosovo as an independent state. Unfortunately, a few hooligans ended what was a very peaceful march by torching the US and other western embassies.

Never mind that they probably have no clue why Kosovo is a cause worth rioting for…

Alas, this boneheaded episode merely reflects Serbia’s uncanny tendency to always find a way to cut its nose to spite its face. Or perhaps that tendency is to bite the hand that feeds it.

After all, for many years now, the US has been the biggest donor and guarantor of aid to Serbia. And this is the case despite Serbia’s hollow and self-defeating fraternization with oil-rich Russia, the Machiavellian enabler of its misguided anti-Americanism.

At any rate, instead of eliciting international support for their cause, the protesters only incited worldwide outrage and condemnation. Not to mention that their relatively impoverished government will now have to expend scarce resources repairing damage to the embassy and surrounding buildings; or that the only person killed in their attacks was a fellow Serb.

John McCain’s sex for legislation scandal

Yesterday, instead of being heralded as the presumptive Republican nominee for president of the United States, Sen. John McCain was being hoisted by his own petard.

Because, having based his entire career on his public and personal integrity, the New York Times published a damning report calling into question not only his political ethics but also his marital fidelity.

In short, the Times reports that big corporations hired a young blonde to pimp out as a lobbyist in Washington, DC. And that of all of the politicians who became her “Johns,” McCain was most noteworthy for the legislative favors he provided in exchange for her services.

Of course, he denies every fact and insinuation in this report. Specifically, he and his defenders insist that he “never betrayed any public trust.” Indeed, to be fair to McCain, he always said he never took money from lobbyists. But he never said anything about sex; which brings me to his wife Cindy.

Because as I watched his “I did not have sex with that woman” press conference yesterday, I was drawn to the way she was standing by her man, literally. Yet I could not help thinking that she looked the way Sen. Larry Craig’s wife looked as she stood by her man during his “I am not gay” press conference a few months ago.

On the other hand, perhaps in due course she will emulate Hillary Clinton by blaming her husband’s alleged affair on a vast left-wing conspiracy….

John Kerry, international statesman

Most politicians would probably hold an eternal grudge after being upstaged the way Barack Obama has upstaged John Kerry in recent years. But I’m happy to report that Kerry has taken being relegated to the dustbin of presidential history rather well.

In fact, he was the first of Obama’s Senate colleagues to endorse his candidacy earlier this year. Moreover, given his current world tour to hotspots like Afghanistan and Pakistan, Kerry has clearly joined the ranks of those actively auditioning to serve as secretary of state in an Obama administration.

And, frankly, a President Obama could do a lot worse. Here’s to Secretary Kerry!

Hillary vs. Obama in Texas debate

I feel obliged to remind you that we’re not electing the leader of a debating society. Because, if that were the case, Hillary would be the runaway winner.Therefore, don’t be swayed by the media’s focus on who landed the most blows. After all, these debates are staged more to entertain political pundits than to inform ordinary voters.

For what it’s worth, however, I thought Obama prevailed….

[Obama-Day Tuesday…South Carolina, The iPINIONS Journal, January 22, 2008]

Ditto last night’s CNN debate in Texas. Indeed, the fact that Obama won the second consecutive one-on-one debate with Hillary indicates that he has now surpassed her not only in pledged delegates but also in debating points.

More significantly, nothing demonstrated Hillary’s resignation in this respect quite like the way she ended this debate; i.e., by effectively conceding the nomination as follows:

All the same, Obama must have read my commentary on the South Carolina debate. Because even though Hillary has been hounding him to agree to weekly debates, he has insisted that, after 18 already, one more is enough. Hear, hear!