The Bishop and the Butterfly: Murder, Politics, and the End of the Jazz Age

    Big Bird Wins Debate

    By PeraclesPlease on Thu, 10/04/2012 - 6:19pm |

     

    Rather dumb of Mitt to take on Big Bird personally.

    "I love Big Bird....now I'm going to kill him!!!"

    The perfect embodiment of "compassionate conservatism".

    Lessee, a character 80 million Americans have watched as kids, 95% of preschoolers watch.

    A mainstay for GOP & Dem moms keeping pre-schoolers on educational programs vs. video games.

    A new initiative to bring more Hispanic culture to public TV.

    Pissing off 8-year-old kids... (and their moms) - see below.

    A lot of damage caused for a cheap shot. No clearer takeaway from the debate.

    Most important, it embodies the big debate over government: a grouchy politician's bottom-line accounting vs. a more feel-good government that cares for people's needs. 

    And it'll likely trend more for women than men, not in Romney's favor.

    I'm beginning to think Obama's rope-a-dope worked. Just keep out of trouble and let Romney dig in deeper.

    [And as I thought the title observation original, seems the meme's already going around the intertubes plus Daily Mail, Time, Washington Post. Seems the bird's well connected]

    #SaveBigBird

     

    Comments

    I believe this meme will do more to undermine Romney than any good dig by Obama during the debate. 

    There is so much material to work with.  People who are apolitical and might not vote at all get involved and push the meme.


    by Elusive Trope on Thu, 10/04/2012 - 6:42pm

    The brutal viral messaging Koch Brothers can't buy. Visual and familiar.


    by PeraclesPlease on Thu, 10/04/2012 - 6:56pm

    And visceral. As you point out, we all grew up with the Muppets, became emotionally tied to one or another of characters. 


    by Elusive Trope on Thu, 10/04/2012 - 7:07pm

    Uh-oh, I feel a "choose your avatar" contest coming up.

    But where are the female characters aside from Miss Piggy?


    by PeraclesPlease on Thu, 10/04/2012 - 7:10pm

    There's the blonde chick in the rock band


    by Elusive Trope on Thu, 10/04/2012 - 7:18pm

    Prairie Dawn

    Character.prairiedawn

     

     

     

     

     

    Sesame Street apparently embraces it male dominated cast:


    by Elusive Trope on Thu, 10/04/2012 - 7:26pm

    Not to get all psychological, but we are wired to reduce something long and complex like many worded debate.  Who remembers what was actually said during the Carter Reagan debate, except "there you go again."  Who can remember (without googling it) what he was responding to.

    With the new technology we have become even more visually orientated before.  Isn't McCain and the debates been reduced to this in the cultural memory:

    So now if someone says the Obama Romney debate, what is the first image that pops into my mind, before there are even words

    And there are words in the image.  These words override whatever words were actually said during the debate.


    by Elusive Trope on Thu, 10/04/2012 - 7:53pm

    a03.jpg


    by Aunt Sam on Thu, 10/04/2012 - 7:56pm

    Perfect.  Beaker responds:


    by Elusive Trope on Thu, 10/04/2012 - 8:08pm

                                             Fired Big Bird (Mitt Romney Hates Big Bird)Fired Big Bird (Mitt Romney Hates Big Bird)

     

     


    by Aunt Sam on Thu, 10/04/2012 - 10:09pm


    by Elusive Trope on Thu, 10/04/2012 - 11:44pm

    Ann Romney's visit to Sesame Street will be a little different, I guess.

     

     


    by Elusive Trope on Thu, 10/04/2012 - 8:12pm

    I suppose she could show the kids how to be an owner of a Olympic bound horse


    by Elusive Trope on Thu, 10/04/2012 - 8:32pm

    Sam Stein on the Ed Show probably put it best when it commented that while Obama lost the debate, he didn't do or say anything that will haunt him.  As the above demonstrates, the same cannot be said of Romney.


    by Elusive Trope on Thu, 10/04/2012 - 8:27pm

    Between his stated support for the Keystone Pipeline and so-called "clean" coal (clean coal is like tasty feces), Romney was definitely better at convincing me of why I should vote for Obama than Obama was.

    by Verified Atheist on Thu, 10/04/2012 - 8:45pm

    One of the facets not discussed pre-debate and post-debate is whether what Romney said would fire up the opposition.  I think we can say that he did.  In fact, the fact that Obama didn't say things everyone of a liberal bent was screaming at the tv only reinforced in them why they need to make sure this man does not get into the Oval Office.  I am in no way thinking this was Obama's team plan, but the reality is that liberals are talking over the internet about "what he should had said was...."  And this reinforces the notion why it is important, if you are liberal, why you need to do what you can to ensure Obama returns to the WH.


    by Elusive Trope on Thu, 10/04/2012 - 9:08pm

    I stopped watching the debate when Obama pointed out that Romney was abandoning the platform he had been campaigning upon for the last year.

    When you dismiss something on that scale and the interlocutor acts like it didn't happen, the discussion is over. 


    by moat on Sat, 10/06/2012 - 8:40pm

    Why doesn't Romney support Downtown Abbey? Is it that it hit too close to home?


    by Elusive Trope on Fri, 10/05/2012 - 12:01am