The problem with McCain is that a lot of his thinking was shaped in the 1950's. He likes to talk about President Eisenhower, and he really never experienced a social awakening like much of the rest of the country did. Obviously that wasn't his thought--as he says, he was 'tied up' at the time, but nevertheless the whole Cold War 'us vs. them' mentality that has served us so disastrously during the Bush administration is part of McCain's psyche.

So it's not surprising that being stuck in a 'back to the future' mentality (whether you mean back to the eighties are back to the fifties) he looks at politics the same way-- the old way of doing things. He does things the old way and there is no way of getting around that. In some ways that is good-- in some of his legislative accomplishments he has co--sponsored with Democrats like Kerry, Kennedy and Feingold and in that way seems to predate some of the harsh partisanship that dominated the 1990's and 2000's, but it is a sharp contrast to Obama's view towards the future.

If you ever saw the 'back to the future' movies with Michael J. Fox, at the time the 1980's is the present, the 1950's is the past and the 2010's is the future. Well, McCain is a product of the fifties, who has been in politics since the eighties, and if allowed to lead in the 2010's would bring some really old, old ideas with him.

Yeah, I can be mildly entertained watching old black and white reruns of "Howdy Doody" too, but they belong to the past, and so does John McCain.
Eli_Blake | Homepage | 05.23.08 - 7:10 pm | #

McCain is an old man, and he has old ideas.

And that is in keeping with his politics-- the old politics of the past.
Eli_Blake | Homepage | 05.23.08 - 7:47 pm | #

That's a big problem. You can't fix a great many of the issues of these times with a lot of those thinking styles of the 50s, or even the 80s. Many people are capable of changing their thinking, to fit the current times. Put it in "D" if you want to go forward; put it in "R" if you want to go backwards.



Hell, he doesn't even keep up with what is happening now.

(Yeah, those "Back To The Future" reruns get watched around here.)
Barbi | 05.23.08 - 11:43 pm | #

Eli,

McCain is Back to the Future alright. He's as crazy energetic as Doc without any interest in science or the present.

However, he's also corrupt. Nobody keeps that many lobbyists around them unless that's the only way they know how to operate.

He's Cheney on Alzheimer's meds.
SandyH | 05.24.08 - 8:22 am | #