I Sold More Books Than Joe the Plumber

I sold more books than Joe the Erstaz Plumber! But, then, again, I'm sure that most authors have - according to The Washington Post, a total of 11 people showed up to "Joe"'s (his name isn't Joe either) book signing at a Border's in Washington, DC, yesterday - and only 5 books were sold!

Now, book signings are not easy. Many any author will tell you the time they drove hundreds of miles to a reading and signing, only to find that the books didn't arrive at the book shop. Or, only three people were in the audience - two of whom were drunks who wandered in, and the third a book store employee.

But book signings in or near big cities always do a least a little better than Joe. Last signing that I did for The Plot to Save Socrates, at a Barnes and Noble in Yonkers, NY, brought in 27 sales (yeah, I was counting), and, let's face it, I'm not exactly a household name...

Somehow, Joe, who isn't a licensed plumber, is almost a household name - because the media couldn't resist giving big coverage to his know-nothing views (for example, that Obama's election would be "death" to Israel).

It's good to see the book buying public is a little smarter. Here's to Gutenberg and literacy!

Julio Osegueda: A Democratic, Real Joe the Plumber

I just saw Julio Osegueda on Countdown - he was the enthusiastic Edison State College student who asked the final question at President Obama's town hall meeting, earlier today, in Fort Meyers, Florida.

And what a wonderful town hall meeting it was. Obama kissing Henrietta Hughes on the cheek, after she asked him for help in getting a place to live, Julio jumping up and down at the end, so thrilled to be able to ask the President a question. Real emotion, real people. It has to be moving, heartening, inspiring after eight years of the fake compassion the Republicans like to dole out.

Julio's a communications major (yes!), and a Yankee fan, too! My wife said he's the Democratic Joe the Plumber, the real Joe the Plumber. Julio's the real thing, not the ersatz plumber, the deadbeat, that Republicans sprung on America in the campaign season, and some media continue to give a microphone to now.

This, in a nutshell, is the enduring difference, at least in our age, of Democrats and Republicans. Neither is a perfect political party, and there are good and bad politicians in each. But whereas Republicans deal with make-believe heroes, and try to get us to worry about make-believe threats, the Democrats at least work in reality. Real people, real hope. There's just nothing else like it.

Kudos to Shep Smith for Smacking Down Joe the Ersatz Plumber

I didn't get a chance say this night, with all the excitement of that great Obama-Clinton rally at midnight in Florida, but I wanted to give a shout-out to Shep Smith on Fox for the way he took on, smoked out, and smacked down Joe the Plumber on his ignorant statement about Obama and Israel yesterday.

Someone told Joe the Deadbeat Contractor - he's not a licensed plumber - that he was entitled to have a quotable opinion not only about rusty pipes and maybe making ends meet, but on foreign affairs! Actually, not someone, but John McCain, Sarah Palin, the RNC, and every Republican we've been seeing on television. But as we saw on Shep Smith's Studio B on Fox yesterday, Joe the Plumber probably knows less about foreign affairs than Sarah Palin.

At a campaign rally yesterday, Joe the Plumber was asked if a vote for Obama would mean "death to Israel". He plumbed his vast knowledge of world relations, and said, yes, that was a point that he had to agree with. The man in the crowd asked if he could shake the Plumber's hand.

Shortly after, Shep Smith asked Joe why he would endorse a statement like that. Smith pointed out that Obama has repeatedly said he would be Israel's unswerving defender as President. Joe's answers varied from Joe's opinion didn't matter, to we should look at Obama's actions not words about Israel. And what actions were that? Obama's willingness to talk with the President of Iran, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. As Keith Olbermann later pointed out on Countdown - last time I checked, saying you would be willing to talk to someone is speaking ("saying") as distinct from "acting" (actually going to meet with someone).

But kudos to Shep Smith for taking on this blowhard would-be plumber. I've been saying for years that Fox News is not evil incarnate on television. They have a Republican, right-wing bias, which I strongly disagree with, just as MSNBC has a progressive bias which I endorse and enjoy. But not every anchor or commentator on Fox News is Sean Hannity. And last night, Shep Smith was (cue Keith Olbermann voice) one of the best persons in the world.




Added 28 October 2009: See also Shep Smith Speak Up and Does the Right Thing - Once Again