Joe the Plumber and Chance the Gardener

I wish that Keith Olbermann would bring up this analogy on Countdown. Doing a Google search on "Joe the Plumber" "Chance the Gardener" I find that some other bloggers have already made the connection. But this deserves big play!

In the 1979 movie, Being There, Peter Sellers played Chance the Gardener. This is how he referred to himself. He had led a very sheltered life, learning about the world entirely from watching TV, and is at quite a loss when his employer dies. There's a memorable moment when he says, "I like to watch" - this and nearly everything he says is taken in the wrong context, as if his words reflect great depth of meaning and wisdom. Another saying is, there will be growth in the spring - he's just thinking about his garden, but it's taken to refer to the economy.

So now, plucked from obscurity by his lying and videoed conversation with Barack Obama, Joe the Plumber is going around with John McCain on the campaign trail, and being sought after for quotes - yes, Obama will mean death to Israel, yes Obama is a Socialist, and on and on.

Thus, 1979 satire becomes 2008 reality! Thanks for another great campaign memory, John!