Attacks on spouses & political scandals

Barack Obama has struck out at right-wing criticism of his wife, Michelle. It, infuriates him, he says. In an interview with women’s magazine Glamour he singled out:

“…the conservative press — Fox News and the National Review and columnists of every ilk — went fairly deliberately at her in a pretty systematic way, and treated her as the candidate in a way that you just rarely see the Democrats try to do against Republicans… If you start being subjected to rants by Sean Hannity and the like, day in day out, that’ll drive up your negatives.”

I tuned into H&C just now to see what Hannity’s response is. “Unrepentent” would be an understatement. He did make the point that Michelle Obama is actively campaigning for her husband. The evil genius Rove opined that it would have been better for Obama to downplay the matter. I’m inclined to agree with Hannity but not Rove, for a change.

Richard Worth’s favourite union-buster

Richard Worth’s “Political Quote of the Week” today is from John D Rockefeller, Jr, who Worth describes as a “major philanthropist – donated over $537 million to myriad causes over his lifetime (1874-1960).”

The quote is trite and not really applicable in NZ — in fact, so many of our so-called entrepreneurs simply import ideas from overseas that the reverse might be more true:

“If you want to succeed you should strike out on new paths rather than travel the worn paths of accepted success” –  –

Worth, not one of the brightest sparklers in the National fireworks collection, seems blissfully ignorant of Rockefeller’s role in the Ludlow Massacre of 20 people, 11 of them children, which brought to an end a bloody strike caused by the refusal of the Rockefeller family’s Colorado Fuel and Iron Company and several smaller mine operators to recognise the miners’ union.

Veitch in 66 words

Resigning was the right thing. Good it will be investigated. Media should butt out. The media execs will hold themselves to account. Yeah right. Did the lawyers pervert the course of justice? Let’s hope for wider change in attitudes to violence, domestic in particular. Nuff said.

Postscript: No, I am not applying for a job as a National Party policy writer.