Partly Political Thinking, Partly Just Thinking.

Yesterday, I came home from a therapy session and while I was getting dressed, flipped on C Span to see what was going on. Dennis Kusinich (I hope that's spelled right) was in New Hampshire, holding a meeting and campaigning for President.

Medical care has been high in my mind for the last few months, and I have admitted that there is at least a neuron or two in this decrepit old brain that has some sympathy for some sort of socialized medicine. Kusinich was in the process of detailing what would be his proposal for a single pay socialized medicine program if he were elected president. I will have to say, as an old high school debate coach that he outlined a very workable, economical (could there really be such a thing) program, detailing it step by step, including sources of funding, which other types of funding would be replaced, the degree to which it could also be correlated with some private practice of medicine as well, and so forth. I am so used to hearing presidential candidates talk in broad generalities and principles, in "sound bites" as it were that it was shocking to hear a candidate carefully explaining his ideas, and producing evidence to support them that I was quite caught up.

He went on into his concept that war should never be an implement of policy, and implying that military should be limited to defensive war and that ,quote, "I was a third string quarterback on a not very good football team, and even with that background, I know offense from defense." , and he went on chatting about a number of other things that give an old conservative like me the "willies".

As I reflected though, I rather doubt that the congressman has a chance at the nomination, but having listened to him for about an hour, I think that if I were a Republican campaign strategist or party officer I would solemnly pray that he would not get the nomination, because he communicates in such a straightforward, literate but folksy manner that if he had the backing of a party nomination he would be a frighteningly elect able candidate.

Obama is showy and impressive in his own way, and Hilary is --well--- Hillary, and though I would not be securely confident that any of the Republican folks will beat either of them, I am sure that most of the promising Republicans "could" beat either of them. I really think Kusinich would be more dangerous to the right, and this type of communication could easily be why a lot of right wing folks are getting enthusiastic about Fred Thompson. Just thinking.

Another thought. I was consulting tracksy and discovered an inordinate number of google hits yesterday and today. It appears that my long ago friend, about which I wrote a little bit, Ed Martz, or Edward Mallory as he became known in show business passed away this weekend. (I hate reading obits about people my age). I couldn't help but thing about the way people pass through each other's lives, interacting, sometime importantly but when the interaction is over at the moment, they go on not thinking much about each other. Ed did some really nice things for me personally when we were working together at the San Diego Shakespeare Festival (could it be 1955 or six). He played several important roles, and probably was as good a Benedict in Much Ado About Nothing, as I have ever seen (and I have seen a bunch). The fact is, that though he was a very good actor, he was far from the best actor at the festival, and the best actor (in my opinion) I never have seen again, not even in B movies or anything. Ed went on to be a well known soap opera actor, and as I looked up his record he directed two or three movies, that I have seen, that were excellent, and with which I hadn't associated him at all. A fellow asked me the other day if any of my students has been "famous". The fact is, that only two or three of my students ever became household names, and none of them became famous as actors. Some became famous in other areas of performance, some under their original names and others under theatre pseudonyms, and it humbles me a bit to think that they probably would have done what they did if they had never met me, but like Ed they went through my life, and then went on into their own. There were just a lot of things to think about this week. Now back to my taxes. I am going up to use a time share at Hilton Head Island all next week, and while everyone else there will be worried about the Heritage Golf Tournament, I'll be puttering at my laptop trying to finish my taxes. Does posting on consecutive days mean that this is going to get habitual? Of course not, next week I probably won't have web access unless my time share has added a feature that they haven't told me about.