Dr Joe Mason, 2012 Democrat for President: Excellent Speech, Valid Points

I've heard Wednesday's gathering of erstwhile Republicans seeking their party's nomination; it resembled a reality show about speed-dating B-listers. I've heard Thursday's Presidential speech to a combined session of Congress.


And yet, somehow, in spite of all the preparation and professional handlers, the best speech I've heard in a while is on a YouTube video of uncertain provenance.

This comes via James Fallows, and he is quite right to mention appropriate caveats:

• There is no certain knowledge of who this is
• This could be Republican agitprop
• This could be Koch astroturfing
• This could be AMA vs. ObamaCare

It's worth a listen:



It is rhetorically sophisticated and quite well presented. For a first exposure, it piques the interest and leaves space for subsequent interaction. This is not something cooked up in a garage; in fact, the jumps in the soundtrack quality seem more like intentional artifacts than rough spots in editing, like when you buy brand-new distressed furniture.

Let's assume the worst and the lowest; let's stipulate, for a moment, that this is an actor doing a voice-over, with a script provided by a dirty-tricks team, funded by the Koch Brothers, hoping to raise a premature Potemkin Coffee Party to sow disarray among the Democrats.

Even given all that, the brilliance of this piece is it leaves you thinking even if the source is suspect. This presentation asks some good questions. And generally, a good question is a good question, regardless of who's asking.