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Post 0

Sunday, November 6 - 9:25pm

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I just got done watching "The West Wing". It had a live presidential debate tonight between Jimmy Smits (the Democrat) and Alan Alda, (the Republican). I've always liked Alan Alda and his grinning eagerness, energy, and enthusiasm.

Tonight Hawkeye Pierce came through.

Alan Alda is an old-fashioned liberal and yet tonight he, a seventy year old man, aging gracefully in years and stature, showed unchanged the same passion, as well as the intensity, the energy, and the humor of a twenty-something Hawkeye of MASH. This old liberal made a better, more impassioned and more convincing cased for freedom, lower taxes, less government, school choice, private enterprise, nuclear power and more oil drilling and the system the founding fathers wanted to create than any real political figure I've seen in about twenty years.

It was a shining and miraculous moment of national television. If he was acting and scripted, boy, he was convincing. And the arguments were telling. And he didn't apologize for anything (or tamp down his positions or his rhetoric to appeal to additional voting blocs).

Ineffectual, unlistened to, academic, or long-winded Objectivists and libertarians (not to mention pro-market conservatives) should tape this speech and study it.

It had moral fire. And moral fire rightly controlled and directed essentializes and purifies.

Making the case for freedom is simple...if you are this eloquent. And impossible if you are not or do not study rhetoric and logic and know economics inside out.

...And by the way, he also made the best explanation of why Africa is poor and starving I've ever heard in such a short period. I learned some things (even though I already know a great deal on this issue.)

Philip Coates
(Edited by Philip Coates
on 11/06, 9:29pm)

Post 1

Sunday, November 6 - 9:42pm

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Darnit Phil, I don't watch much TV at all let alone The West Wing, but you make me wish I had!

Post 2

Monday, November 7 - 6:56am

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During a commercial break from a crime drama, we flipped channels to see what else played last night. The debate caught my eye so I did a quick check using the online television schedule to learn it was an episode of The West Wing. I only watched a few minutes, but I agree with Phil that Alda gave an intense performance.

Does anyone know if the network plans to continue this show after Martin Sheen's character reaches the end of his term limit?

If the show does continue, does anyone know if the network plans to have Smits win the election to become the new President?

This reviewer gave the event zero stars:

http://www.suntimes.com/output/entertainment/cst-ftr-elf07.html

A real poll after the debate showed the Smits character in overwhelming favor.

Post 3

Monday, November 7 - 10:24am

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Alda also gave a memorable performance as a crooked senator in The Aviator. It's the only movie I can think of that shows a literate grasp of the difference between a real entrepreneur (Hughes) and a mixed-economy businessman (Trippe) and the type of politician he feeds off.

(I wonder if Alda understood this.)

Peter

Post 4

Monday, November 7 - 2:00pm

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I decided to record the episode last night. 'West Wing' is often accused of having a liberal slant, and republicans like Vinick (Alan Alda) are not often shown in a sympathetic manner. This was true last night as well, if you noticed the audience reactions to some of Vinick's responses.

Nonetheless I thought Alda was brilliant, especially with his argument about African poverty. I'll transcribe part of his speech:

"Debt relief to those [African] countries won't help much."
(Moderator):"Okay, what will?"
"Tax cuts"
(audience gasp)
"Some African tax rates are the highest in the world. In Tanzania the 30% rate kicks in at $475 of income. Plus there's a 20% 'value added' tax they put on to everything. Those high tax rates have made it impossible to build capital in those countries. So as a result, nothing gets built; not roads, not factories, not anything. ...Taxes have killed any hope of those countries helping themselves. And the result is they have become completely dependent on charity, on loans. And here's the worst part: do you know why those taxes are so high? Because of us. Because they have to prove to us that they can raise enough money to pay back their loans. But taxes can't raise any money if they kill the economy. So it turns out that the tragic unintended consequence of our good intentions toward Africa, our kindness, is that we have encouraged those countries to lock themselves into an economic depression. If we don't urge those countries to lower their tax rates, they will never grow their economies. People will live lifetimes of unemployment, disease will be rampant, poverty will be permanent, children will be hungry. And our charity will never be enough. Never."

His entire debate stance was a basic argument against government's good intentions and interventions. He promoted the free market to solve health care, education, and oil shortages. His conclusion in fact was an explicit articulation about the "different philosophies of government", saying while his opponent has confidence in the government, he has confidence in freedom. "To govern is to choose. Do we want more government, or more control of government?"

Like Philip said, it had fire. I would love to be able to speak with such conviction. I plan to study it myself.

Post 5

Monday, November 7 - 9:53pm

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Hi Luke,

On the two points you raised, I suspect Smits will win, not because Alda has not been given favorable treatment in the episodes (he has, just as much as Smits), but because much air time is being given to Smits's advisors, coworkers, wife, etc. but not to Alda's 'entourage'.

No surprise about the poll. The audience for this show is more liberal than conservative (unfortunately true for any literate, well-written show because if you took fifty million conservatives and fifty million liberals, the liberals would be better educated... just a fact.)

Stephen, thanks for that great quote from the debate. Wonderful writing*. Alda shocked the audience with his blunt conservatism more than once....

...but they ended up applauding him (and Smits).

Phil

*can you imagine making this wonderful point in fewer, compressed, powerful, effective words...and still making the economic logic clear?

Post 6

Tuesday, November 8 - 11:56pm

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     I remember a month ago reading some 'hype' about this upcoming series-debate and I planned on catching it. Alda's political orientation (not to mention the show's) nwst, I was sure he'd (as always) be worth watching (though the idea makes me think of Henry Fonda playing General MacArthur); and, I was interested how Smits would handle that type of character-situation.

     I missed the f****r.

     I do hope they make THIS series DVD'd.

LLAP
J:D

Alan Alda's Finest Hour