"He pulls a knife, you pull a gun"

[DancingBear]

(mods - please move if in wrong forum - thanks)


“He pulls a knife, you pull a gun” – Jim Malone to Elliot Ness in ‘The Untouchables”, and sage advise to John Kerry for the next 100 days. “He sends one of yours to the hospital, you send one of his to the morgue.”

These are dangerous days that lie ahead, with lie being the operative word here. We face no normal enemy in this election, far from it. We literally face a monster, a group of machines with no cloak of decency, no shred of compassion, and no notion of truth. Look around – there are people on radio impugning a war hero with a series of lies so disgusting that in other times the accusers would be spat on in the street. Instead, today, they roll into welcome arms on All-Hate Radio throughout the country, while paid shills wearing buttons that say “look ma, I’m a news anchor” give them shelter. Look around - the kid voted “most likely to commit a felony” in high school stands in front of a podium with the Great Seal Of The United States on it, and nobody asks to speak to his parole officer. Look around – Iraq is page A9 in the papers and a 2 a.m. update on the “news” because Kobe did it, no he didn’t, she was pregnant, no she wasn’t. Oh, I might vote, I mean, Bush seems to be a Christian man, and we haven’t been attacked in over an hour…

So we speak in political nuances in a climate where nuances are to most Americans like the elements are to human life - a necessary part of the equation only to those who wish to look. Otherwise, hey, if ya mix a couple of ‘em together you get salt. Whoopee. Will the Yankees win it all this year? Will the Redskins make the playoffs? I’m sorry, John, did you say something important? We must have missed it, although we did hear the first part, you know, the “I agree with the President” part. What’s that, you say? We took it out of context - you had more – that wasn’t all? Sorry, not a lot of time on the newscasts, you know. Bush was talking tough in Florida, and that’s big. It’s a swing state, you know – Karl told us.

“He sends one of yours to the hospital, you send one of his to the morgue. That’s how you beat Capone.” John, you’re staring Capone right in the face, and you’ve got a shot. You really do. Most of us know he’s a thief - some need to be convinced. Most of us know he’s a liar - some need to be convinced. Like Capone, he stands protected and hidden by those who stand to benefit from his evil. Like Malone and Ness, you need to turn on a flashlight and make some noise. So do it.

Every damn minute of every damn day, do it. If it looks like you’ll have to scream at the top of your lungs, then scream. 30 seconds for the masses, John, 30 seconds for the masses. “Hey, George, you want some of this!” Short. Sweet. Deadly. Over and over and over. They want sound bites, give ‘em sound bites. “Where are your military records, George?” Why haven’t you been to a funeral, George?” “Why are oil prices so high, George?” Pick your pleasure, and repeat ad infinitum.

This is YOUR task, John. Press releases don’t feed the bulldog, nor do three paragraph responses from the East Rim. It’s a 30 second world, John, and we ain’t in Massachusetts no more. I’ve seen you close the deal before, but time’s growing short. Close it now, John, close it now. If he wants a fight, give him one. Your opponent is a stupid man, but his handlers are not. If you focus on them, they can hurt you, but if attack the fool and bruise his bravado he will act in stupid ways. He always has, and he always will. Like Capone, he cannot stand to be upstaged. Take the spotlight, John.

“He sends one of yours to the hospital, you send one of his to the morgue.”

“Now, do you want to do that? Are you ready to do that?”

[phillybri]

1. THAT'S the Chicago way...

n/t

[rkc3]

2. Kerry needs to pull the trigger very soon.

He needs to take Clinton's advice and fire back. His supporters have been worried for months that he's letting Bushco define him - they're still doing it and twisting his words to make him look bad.

A simple retort - Mr. Bush, you've attacked my war record. Would you be so kind to share your National Guard record with the rest of America? Where were you during the time you were supposed to be in Alabama?

[Kolesar]

3. "What are you prepared to do about it?"

Kerry was quite cautious in planning the convention speeches. I would hope that he and his team have plans to launch some of the attacks you describe. One a week for three months would do it.

[Demoiselle]

4. YES! I've been thinking of Sean Connery fondly all week.

But then I spend a lot of time thinking of Sean Connery fondly.
Kerry's a fighter with a pretty impeccable sense of timing. I think it's gonna be fine.