I'm working on improving the formatting right now!

I just finished it for the second time, non-formatted.

Zombie, I'm not worthy!

"Clever Hans" would be a good LGF handle.

If you are correct and McCain pulls this off, I will put a picture of your icon on the mantle next to that of my sainted father.

re: #3 DeafDog

"Clever Hans" would be a good LGF handle.

I'm still a fan of "Jurassic Slapass"

Bad link!

Give me half an hour to spiff it up a little!

I realize it's a bit dense and hard to read.

re: #6 Who Watches the Watchmen?

Bad link!

I just fixed it. A momentary glitch. All OK now.

I love it when Zombie gets all wonky... ooh baby, talk meta to me!

Link ok now.... I caught it just before it was refreshed... what was that link anyway?

While we're waiting: Veteran of the Psychic Wars

I'm in that kind of mood.

I will disappear from this thread for several minutes as I work on the formatting. Will be back soon!

Zombie Nation

Good essay, but the title is built off of a false premise. The Left's big blunders are very nearly innumerable, and to present an essay with a title that presumes that there is just one blunder, or one in preeminence over all of the other massive fuck-ups is extremely misleading.

It was, like, long n'stuff, with lots of big words, and no pictures of Brazilian bikini models, so I skipped to the end:

Yet it may very well be that an army of glum, dispirited and pessimistic conservatives will reluctantly trudge to the polls on November 4, each one imagining they are only remaining person in the entire country voting for McCain, and lo and behold -- they'll turn out to be a silent majority after all.

Inshallah, habibi.

Of course, what might come right after that, among all the Angry Left types who were SURE they were going to win this one... well, that's why I've topped up my ammo supply as of late.

I still *think* a Very Bad Scenario is unlikely. But I'm less sure of that then I used to be.

Zombie, it looks like you have two of paragraph number two....

Wow. That's some essay. Amazing work.

Great job, Zombie!

re: #15 Occasional Reader

But I'm less sure of that then than I used to be.

(Sweet jebus, are they pumping paint fumes into my office this afternoon or something?)

After smearing the military, Murtha starts in on his racist, redneck, knuckle-dragging constituents

PITTSBURGH (AP) - U.S. Rep. John Murtha says his home base of western Pennsylvania is racist and that could reduce Barack Obama's victory margin in the state by 4 percentage points.
The 17-term Democratic congressman tells the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette in a story posted Wednesday on its Web site that, as he put it: "There is no question that western Pennsylvania is a racist area."

He says it's taken time for many Pennsylvania voters to come around to liking Obama, but he should still win the state, though not in a runaway.

In a separate interview posted Wednesday on the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review's Web site, Murtha says Obama has a problem with the race issue in western Pennsylvania that could shave 4 points off his lead in the state.

re: #15 Occasional Reader

I still *think* a Very Bad Scenario is unlikely. But I'm less sure of that then I used to be.

OR! How could you?

Than, not then!

Excellent piece. That is what I am banking on. The polls are wrong. The Obama camp is playing the propoganda game right out of the Alinsky playbook. "There is nothing wrong with what you are seeing - do not adjust the sound on your T.V." But this is not the Outer Limits - we are not mind-numbed robots - we know that the crap being doled out by the Left is not in fact reality. I keep saying to anyone who will listen: keep the faith. This will be closer than you think.

re: #16 WindHorse

Yeah, I saw that too.

/you beat me to it...

It's excellent, Zombie. Must read it all, later.

This Zombie person is one talented dude..er..dudette.......You rock Zombie!

OK, I've made it fixed-width at 900 pixels. Does it look better? Refresh page.

I also increased point size on chapter headings.

re: #21 Dianna

OR! How could you?

Than, not then!

For all intensive purposes, I've already made that correction, irregardless of your post.

re: #20 Palandine

After smearing the military, Murtha starts in on his racist, redneck, knuckle-dragging constituents

PITTSBURGH (AP) - U.S. Rep. John Murtha says his home base of western Pennsylvania is racist and that could reduce Barack Obama's victory margin in the state by 4 percentage points.
The 17-term Democratic congressman tells the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette in a story posted Wednesday on its Web site that, as he put it: "There is no question that western Pennsylvania is a racist area."

He says it's taken time for many Pennsylvania voters to come around to liking Obama, but he should still win the state, though not in a runaway.

In a separate interview posted Wednesday on the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review's Web site, Murtha says Obama has a problem with the race issue in western Pennsylvania that could shave 4 points off his lead in the state.

His opponent should run that in his TV ads:

"Do you want to elect someone who thinks, and says, you're all racists?"

Oops, during experimentation I put paragraph 2 in there twice. Now removed! SORRY!

re: #16 WindHorse

Zombie, it looks like you have two of paragraph number two....

No, there's only one.

Don't we all agree there's only one?

(Testing out the Asch Effect here)

re: #29 zombie

Dang! You ruined my experiment!

re: #16 WindHorse

Zombie, it looks like you have two of paragraph number two....

Fixed.

re: #27 Occasional Reader

For all intensive purposes, I've already made that correction, irregardless of your post.

*Weeping, gnashing teeth, rending clothes, pouring ashes on head*

That was cruel!

re: #26 zombie

OK, I've made it fixed-width at 900 pixels. Does it look better? Refresh page.

I also increased point size on chapter headings.

Add another blank line (or two) before each new section heading.

zombie, one small suggestion:

Over 90% of journalists classify themselves politically as "liberal"

Can you source that via hyperlink?

Scholarly work, indeed! great work, Zombie!

You can center it by adding align="center" to the table. Fixed width usually looks better centered.

re: #30 Occasional Reader

No, there's only one.

Don't we all agree there's only one?

(Testing out the Asch Effect here)

And one is nothing
/Firesign Theatre

Looks better. Of course, for me it doesn't matter, because I always paste anything that's much over a page into Wordpad and print it out.

Zombie Zooms Zap Zero

The internet has made public opinion available so quickly that politics is starting to look like a blog. With the speed of an article being buried at Digg so too will opposing political voices be buried in DC. Political decisions are becoming a matter of split-second emotional responses with little to no thought given to logic or historical evidence. The "activist" party will be at the advantage while those who ask for moderation, sensibility, and reason will be figuratively and literally tossed to the side.

re: #39 neocon hippie

Looks better. Of course, for me it doesn't matter, because I always paste anything that's much over a page into Wordpad and print it out.

Tree-killer!

For your penance, you must say 100 "Hail Gores".

oops

Zombie Zooms Zaps Zero

Zombie Zips Zero's Zipper

re: #4 rawmuse

If you are correct and McCain pulls this off, I will put a picture of your icon on the mantle next to that of my sainted father.

I agree and you're work is restoring my faith. Thanks!

Great job Zombie!

re: #42 Occasional Reader

Tree-killer!

For your penance, you must say 100 "Hail Gores".

Count me in as tree killer too.

Wow, zombie, you're an one-trick pony wonder! I'm not worthy! I'm not worthy!

900 pix is fine, but the paragraph width is still a bit too wide for my taste; you could add more left margin. or cowbell.

re: #20 Palandine

After smearing the military, Murtha starts in on his racist, redneck, knuckle-dragging constituents

PITTSBURGH (AP) - U.S. Rep. John Murtha says his home base of western Pennsylvania is racist and that could reduce Barack Obama's victory margin in the state by 4 percentage points.
The 17-term Democratic congressman tells the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette in a story posted Wednesday on its Web site that, as he put it: "There is no question that western Pennsylvania is a racist area."

He says it's taken time for many Pennsylvania voters to come around to liking Obama, but he should still win the state, though not in a runaway.

In a separate interview posted Wednesday on the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review's Web site, Murtha says Obama has a problem with the race issue in western Pennsylvania that could shave 4 points off his lead in the state.

I'm sure Murtha will have plenty of time in retirement to ponder his own stupidity.

Zombie Zonked Zoos Zero

your. PIMF.

But thanks Zombie. I'll be emailing the link to many demoralized people

Zero Zombied as Zoospore

uh, Zombie... I don't see your magnificent article linked to the home page of Zombietime... is that an oversight or are you letting your lizard siblings have the premier crack at it?

From goo to you by way of the zoo

OK, starting to enlarge the font and make it sans serif.

Refresh the page. The top part -- is it easier to read now?

It's tough to discuss this artical on LGF - it's a very heavy essay - and comments will get bookish. By I'll make two observations....

1. The Obama comment that "If not for FOX, I'd be 4 points higher" fits perfectly into the validity of Zombie's observation.

2. I really like the picture of 3 guys at the table in the "Normative and Informational Conformity" section. The guy in the middle kind of looks like a disbelieving lizard. "You guys are really going to vote for Obama? Are you stupid?"

Superb analysis.

The same thing was in effect in 2004. Nobody in the media expected George W. Bush to win. Sarah Palin is energizing Republicans to vote for HER, not necessarily McCain. That is a factor the MSM is missing. T

Our base is bigger than your base. 2004 showed that.

Thus the liberal media effort to dispirit Republicans voters. But they are an echo chamber.

As astonished critic Pauline Kael said in 1972 after Nixon's landslide. "Nobody I know voted for him...."

re: #37 Charles

You can center it by adding align="center" to the table. Fixed width usually looks better centered.

I'll try that.

re: #37 Charles

You can center it by adding align="center" to the table. Fixed width usually looks better centered.

Done. How's it look now?

The only poll that will matter will be the one on Nov. 4. The only that will matter is yours.

Well this. doesn't look very promising. Gulp.

WOW.

I do hope you are right, Oh Mighty Lord of the Undead.

Zero Zone Zoophilous

Additional advice for Mac: Obama is prepared for every line of attack under the sun. Be ready to play rhetorical chess, not checkers - you must have your responses ready to go for any debating trick: changing the argument, straw men, tu quoque (aka "you did it too").

Advice for nervous lizards: don't get your stomach in pre-emptive knots, feeling helpless in the audience, where you have no control. One twist in the news cycle, and every exchange in this debate will go down the voter's memory tubes, just like the Invesco Field Obamapalooza after Governor Palin's introduction. An election doesn't rest on debate alone - turnout is much more significant, and THAT we have an ability to affect!

(and thanks lizards, for mentioning the lengthy unblocked solid texts - I cannot say how many posts in how many forums I have been unable to follow from line to line after the twentieth line of script! And like zombie's Most Valuable Essay, these always seem to be the articles I most want to read =( )

Zombie - for my 2 cents, I'd like to see a sans-serif font like Georgia or even New Times Roman over the serif font that's up there as of the last refresh.

re: #35 Occasional Reader

zombie, one small suggestion:

Can you source that via hyperlink?

Haven't had time yet. The actual number is 93%. Post link here to save me effort, fellow researchers!

Stinky is needed on the thread below. Someone is throwing Onions.

re: #56 zombie

OK, starting to enlarge the font and make it sans serif.

Refresh the page. The top part -- is it easier to read now?

Yes, but did you see my idea in #34?

re: #49 hillbilly geek

900 pix is fine, but the paragraph width is still a bit too wide for my taste; you could add more left margin. or cowbell.

I centered it instead.

re: #54 Conservative in Liberal Hands

uh, Zombie... I don't see your magnificent article linked to the home page of Zombietime... is that an oversight or are you letting your lizard siblings have the premier crack at it?

Haven't had time yet!

re: #20 Palandine

Wow. Those Democrats sure know how to ask for Pennsylvanians to vote for them....... You racists! Hey you over there, bitter and clinging to your guns and bibles! Vote for me!
///

Zombie Zen Zenith

So, when the phone rings and the pollster calls -- and your Clever Hans social antennae tell you the pollster is young and liberal and likely an Obama supporter -- would you have the nerve to tell the pollster the truth that you wouldn't vote for Obama in a million years? I mean, they called you; they know your number. They know who you are. Can you be absolutely sure they aren't putting a check mark in the "Racist" box next to your name in some mysterious database?

I agree this is what's going on in a lot of cases, but I can't imagine why. It's one thing in social situations or at work to lay low and let others think you're a Kool-Aid drinker. You probably like these people for other reasons, or at least you have to put up with them beyond Election Day. But why would you lie to a pollster -- a total stranger who has no personal investment in your response? Are most people that pathetically afraid of not being liked? After a lifetime of being unpopular, I don't care what people think. I guess not everyone has moved past high school.

re: #58 RaiderDan

Superb analysis.

The same thing was in effect in 2004. Nobody in the media expected George W. Bush to win.

I still remember laughing at Andrea Mitchell's stunned expression on MSNBC on election night. Greedily, I hope for 1 more time.

re: #62 Bobblehead

Well this. doesn't look very promising. Gulp.

He's just trying to energize the base.

Rove, you magnificent bastard!

re: #66 Conservative in Liberal Hands

Zombie - for my 2 cents, I'd like to see a sans-serif font like Georgia or even New Times Roman over the serif font that's up there as of the last refresh.

Wh-a-a-aT? I'm confused by that. isn't New Times Roman serif?

You could just delete the whole page and put up a pic with the letters "VP" over Hillary.

Zombie:
after reading the first part of your essay.. all I can say is, I sure hope you're right..

re: #75 DeafDog

I still remember laughing at Andrea Mitchell's stunned expression on MSNBC on election night. Greedily, I hope for 1 more time.

Probably the same look she had when she first saw Alan naked.

/ouch!

re: #77 zombie

Wh-a-a-aT? I'm confused by that. isn't New Times Roman serif?

face="Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif"

zombie, if you are not correct, you must be banished to the far corners of the Lizard kingdom.

/

re: #77 zombie

Wh-a-a-aT? I'm confused by that. isn't New Times Roman serif?

Times New Roman is serif.

The body text changes from san-serif to serif near the top, two paras below "The illusory quest for conformist decision-making in the 2008 presidential election "
It's a little confusing... or am I confused? I'm looking at this in broad strokes

The Romans didn't have serfs, they had slaves.

Interesting essay. Thoughtful and insightful. Impressive.

I'm sure you're not using antique things like "align=" and "face=".

You must be using style="text-align:center;font-family:Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif" and the like.

:)

(But I guess maybe the New Romans had serfs... I'll have to check Gibbon.)

re: #84 hillbilly geek

The body text changes from san-serif to serif near the top, two paras below "The illusory quest for conformist decision-making in the 2008 presidential election "
It's a little confusing... or am I confused? I'm looking at this in broad strokes

It changes to serif after this paragraph:

The Obama campaign itself also takes advantage of the sympathetic media to construct a facade of inevitability. The campaign will stage-manage crowds and dictate camera angles so that Obama is seen to not only have overwhelming numbers of fans but the correct demographic proportion of fans; the campaign will coordinate Obama appearances to coincide with rock concerts or other festivals so they can point to the huge crowds who showed up to watch Obama; and the media plays right along.

re: #58 RaiderDan

" Superb analysis.
...Our base is bigger than your base. 2004 showed that."

All your base are belong to us.

re: #83 Ward Cleaver

My bad, guys and gals. I get serif and sans serif confused...

IMO, For long or complex documents a serif font is preferable. Trouble is that there are so few fonts that translate to all browsers and operating systems.

Bet this is the last time Zombie asks us for suggestions.

This is the same tactic the left tried in 2000' and 2004'...hopefully they have the same results!

good one Z i'm hoping for a 50 state sweep by mccain followed by frog marching all the ballot stuffers and vote frauders of the left

re: #91 Conservative in Liberal Hands

My bad, guys and gals. I get serif and sans serif confused...

Look,
McCain: Honor
Obama: Sans Honor

the Asch Conformity Experiment seems to be the take home message here

Serif font is sometimes easier to read in large blocks of text, actually; is why headlines are often san

re: #94 JimmyTheClaw

good one Z i'm hoping for a 50 state sweep by mccain followed by frog marching all the ballot stuffers and vote frauders of the left

I say let them have pwecious Ohio, we take the rest.

Excellent analysis by Zombie. I would extend the Poker analogy further. The Dems and MSM are skewing the polls to make an Obama victory seem inevitiable. Yet the portion of the population that is probably most influenced by this "meta-campaign" is the youngest and least educated voters who in turn make up key demographics of Obama's support. Thus the segment of the voting population most readily influenced by Obama's "meta-campaign" are his own supporters who may actually believe they hold a stronger hand than they do and may not have as strong of an urge to turn out for the actual vote (especially since these demographics, especially the young, tend to have lower turn out ratios). Or in Poker terms the Dems may stand pat on a weak hand when they should have taken a new card or two to strengthen it.

re: #85 Occasional Reader

The Romans didn't have serfs, they had slaves.

Claudius don't serf!

/Pectus Obscurum

re: #80 Ward Cleaver

Probably the same look she had when she first saw Alan naked.

/ouch!

It was a look of horror, so you are on to something.

re: #92 Ward Cleaver

Bet this is the last time Zombie asks us for suggestions.

And Adriana Lima pics! Those should be added, somewhere.

And funny Blazing Saddles outtakes!

I'll read anything that keeps me optimistic about this election!

Some of my best friends--very intelligent all--have this blind allegiance to Obama that is rooted in denial of FACTS.

Interesting analysis, indeed. If I might be a cynic, however, I would say that there are a few leaps of faith before the conclusion. I would like to see Zombie address Occam's Razor in the analysis.

Fascinating, though!

Going off on another tack, if sibling Zombie is correct, and there is an "illogical" result in the election - that is McCain wins, when the perception is that BHO should have won, what will the response be? More "The Republicans stole the election" crap? Armed uprising?

re: #20 Palandine

After smearing the military, Murtha starts in on his racist, redneck, knuckle-dragging constituents

PITTSBURGH (AP) - U.S. Rep. John Murtha says his home base of western Pennsylvania is racist and that could reduce Barack Obama's victory margin in the state by 4 percentage points.
The 17-term Democratic congressman tells the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette in a story posted Wednesday on its Web site that, as he put it: "There is no question that western Pennsylvania is a racist area."

He says it's taken time for many Pennsylvania voters to come around to liking Obama, but he should still win the state, though not in a runaway.

In a separate interview posted Wednesday on the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review's Web site, Murtha says Obama has a problem with the race issue in western Pennsylvania that could shave 4 points off his lead in the state.

i dont live in johnstown but a few of us donated to his opponents campain and added a note that said even if you dont win run again till you unseat him oh and i like to call hum murthafucker

re: #85 Occasional Reader

The Romans didn't have serfs, they had slaves.

RACIST

I though the last sentence was a good quote to pull:

Yet it may very well be that an army of glum, dispirited and pessimistic conservatives will reluctantly trudge to the polls on November 4, each one imagining they are only remaining person in the entire country voting for McCain, and lo and behold -- they'll turn out to be a silent majority after all.

re: #104 Conservative in Liberal Hands

Going off on another tack, if sibling Zombie is correct, and there is an "illogical" result in the election - that is McCain wins, when the perception is that BHO should have won, what will the response be? More "The Republicans stole the election" crap? Armed uprising?

It's already "chosen". Obama didn't win because America is a racist country

I wish I was that optimistic. Of course, you could be right about the polling but wrong about the strategy. They just be exaggerating his support so that it doesn't look so funny when ACORN stuffs the box.

re: #104 Conservative in Liberal Hands

Going off on another tack, if sibling Zombie is correct, and there is an "illogical" result in the election - that is McCain wins, when the perception is that BHO should have won, what will the response be? More "The Republicans stole the election" crap? Armed uprising?

From Carville to someone named Ali in philly,there have been hints of riots for months. I suspect this is tamping down vocal support for McCain. Nobody wants the rioteers at their house on Nov 5th

You could remove:

<font style="font-size:15" face="Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif"><b>Who Does the Polling?</b></font>

and replace with

<style>
h2 {font-size:15pt;font-family:Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif;}
</style>

<h2>Who Does the Polling</h2>

re: #110 SpartanWoman

From Carville to someone named Ali in philly,there have been hints of riots for months. I suspect this is tamping down vocal support for McCain. Nobody wants the rioteers at their house on Nov 5th

They can come to mine! I have a surprise for them.