Ryan was glued to his teleprompter. It would have been fun to have the electricity on it fry to see if he even knew what he was saying. Happened to me a few weeks back. I'm in the pulpit and....omigosh...sermon notes are on the desk back at the house. Suffice to say that it worked just fine, all points hit. Public speaking requires a road map in your head and not on your page.
Bachman was a bit better, but did you watch her point to her prompts but keep her eyes on her teleprompter? I know it's bad form to turn your head on your audience in some circles, but there's also a stiffness and unnaturalness about not looking at the details you're pointing to. You turn, you look, you turn back and (smile/frown/raise and eyebrow). She, too, was a teleprompter mama.
Obama's teleprompter must look like a Hemingway (short sentences) rough draft. Have you ever noticed Obama speaks in short bursts? Have you ever heard a preacher who was a breather? And I'm gonna tell you, uhhhhhh That the Lord is gonna call you, uhhhhhhhh And he'll call by name, uhhhhhh The name that He knew from eternity. And I'll tell ya some more, uhhhhh And the Lord will tell ya, too, uhhhhhh He'll tell you that you're lost, uhhhhhh As lost as can be. etc., etc. Obama's teleprompter probably looks like that...one short line at a time. That way he can pump his fist, or smile, or laugh, or turn his head. From Ryan they got this sentence: ***We believe government's role is both vital and limited, to defend the nation from attack and provide for the common defense, to secure our borders, to protect innocent life, to uphold our laws and constitutional rights, to ensure domestic tranquility and equal opportunity, and to provide a safety net -- to help provide a safety net for those who cannot provide for themselves.***
Wow, I didn't know we established a Constitutional Theocracy. Safety nets are the responsibility of the Church and the local communities, not the Federal Government. Ryan is the best we got?
Equal rights does not mean "equal opportunities." Nobody has an "equal opportunity" at anything, ever.
Pretty people and smart people and hard working people will have a natural advantage over ugly, stupid and lazy people. In order to have "equal opportunity" you have to punish the good looking, smart and hard working people to bring them all down to the level of the ugly, stupid and lazy people. We are a nation of individuals.
We are not "equal" nor should we be. We are all dealt a hand and we have to deal with it. Guaranteeing "equal opportunity to all" simply means that the Government is going to be dealing out the hands... from the bottom of the deck.
What do you think is the best way to tell if a politician means what they say?
Can this be measured, at least partly, by the extent to which they leave political correctness out of their public comments?