Despite hauling along the clueless plumber to their rallies as a spokesperson, Joe The Plumber, with a $250,000+ salary most of the middle-class can only dream of, is not representative of the middle-class, and it’s an insult to convey him as such. Despite what the GOP seem to believe, he’s not an economist. Despite what he seems to believe, he’s not a foreign policy expert. He is a plumber. You know, the maintenance man you call to fix burst pipes or to unblock your toilet.
When nearing the most important US presidential election day of this generation, when the economy is in shambles, when America is in a permanent state of war, fighting two wars abroad, and with John (“Fight with me..fight, fight..everybody fight”) McCain itching for another, when 4,000+ American soldiers have died fighting a war that should never have happened, when 30,000 American soldiers are injured, 100,000 Iraqi civilians (figure reportedly closer to over 600,000) have died because of misguided , illegal Republican policies, when Americans are losing their jobs, their homes and America’s reputation around the world is at its lowest due to the current administration’s arrogant dismissal of international law, a serious contender for president should not, and would not, bring gimmicks onto the national stage, undermining the seriousness of what is happening in America in a desperate effort to gloss over it. Allowing the unsurprisingly under-vetted plumber he met two weeks ago to speak on behalf of the Republican Party and to express opinions on sensitive issues in the Middle-East and then to televise it as news, is in poor-taste and irresponsible beyond belief - only serving to amplify McCain’s poor judgement. Again.
At a recent rally appearance, when the man suggested, "A vote for Obama is a vote for the death to Israel," the plumber casually replied, "I'll go ahead and agree with you on that one. ... I really think that would be a problem." Putting aside the issue of why the man felt the need to express such an inaccurate and inflammatory remark (I’m sure the groups behind the deplorable, fear-mongering Obama-smearing emails would be able to answer this), Joe’s ill-informed response, “I’ll go ahead and agree with you on that one,” without any evidence to back it up, was so shocking, even to Fox anchorman, Shepard Smith, that he felt obliged to announce a disclaimer, stressing that Obama has stated his positions on the US being a friend to Israel no matter what, clearly and repeatedly. Shaking his head in disbelief after questioning the dumb and defiant plumber on his statement, the anchorman stressed Obama’s unwavering support for Israel and continued, “as for the rest of it...some things just get frightening sometimes.” Coming from Fox, this is a welcome and over-due admission of McCain’s cheap in every way campaign.
For the plumber to be so cavalier with such ignorance about such a sensitive subject on the national stage is beyond belief. Despite the GOP’s attempts to distract the electorate from America’s real problems, it is clear that a vote for McCain/Palin is a vote for a continuation of Bush’s policies. The right-wingers basing their vote on a pro-life stance should be considering the thousands of lives of soldiers and innocent civilians lost every year under a reckless and cruel Republican administration. Despite what the religious right may believe, being ‘pro-life’ is not just about embryos; it’s about grown humans who are dying needlessly. What's humane about this disregard for life?
McCain should be ashamed for bringing another simple narcissist onto the national stage and asking him to campaign on his behalf, and in doing so inflicting yet more idiotic and dangerous opinions into the homes of millions of Americans, but he appears not to care, instead proudly embracing his mistakes.
As Matt Damon correctly observed of the McCain/Palin debacle, “It’s like a really bad Disney movie.” But with so much at stake, it just isn’t funny. McCain may dismiss the opinions of actors and singers, but one has to wonder why McCain finds celebrity endorsements so objectionable? Presumably it’s because he has difficulty finding any. Can’t actors and singers be intelligent human-beings? Are they not capable of compassion? Are American actors and singers not American citizens? Are they not permitted to have political opinions, to advocate worthy causes or to care about the political future of their country? Or is it only the opinions of plumbers everyone should be concerned about?
Do America a favour and stick to what you know, Joe. The stakes are too high for jokes.
