House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has always been an easy target for her critics in the GOP, particularly Republicans in Georgia. There have been some election years, in fact, when I would have sworn that Pelosi was listed on the Georgia ballot because I heard her name pop up so much.
Three years ago, as he was running for reelection to a second term, Gov. Sonny Perdue used a TV spot that featured ominous videotaped images of Hispanic immigrants slipping across the border to illegally enter the United States. The clear message he was sending to the Republican base was, "Vote for me again and I'll boot those illegal aliens clear back to Mexico."
You fasten the triggers
For the others to fire
Then you set back and watch
When the death count gets higher
You hide in your mansion
As young people's blood
Flows out of their bodies
And is buried in the mud
-- Bob Dylan, "Masters of War"
I like to recognize anniversaries and this is one of the more humorous ones. It was one year ago that Dunkin' Donuts became the target of an intifada from certain members of the blogosphere who claimed that the chain of coffee houses was conspiring with food hostess Rachael Ray to spread terrorism in the U.S.
If you remember the controversy - and really, who'd want to forget it? - it started when Ms. Ray did a commercial spot endorsing a new iced coffee being offered by Dunkin' Donuts franchisees. She was wearing a scarf which, it turned out later, had been woven in a paisley pattern.
I am not very good when it comes to making predictions, but as I speculated the other day, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution is continuing to dig into the history of political contributions to Insurance Commissioner John "The Ox" Oxendine. The latest manifestation is an article in the Sunday AJC by Cam McWhirter that looks at an insurance industry committee whose members are appointed by Oxendine, most particularly his money-man Dee Yancey III.
