The Last Debate

Neither candidate landed a knockout and I really thought it was more of the same. Obama seemed more at ease and frankly more presidential. If anything, he seemed a bit dry and boring again. But he has a substantial lead in the polls, and his even demeanor won't hurt him. He wisely played it safe.

We got flashes of McCain's temper here and there; he never came unglued, but at times he looked very upset and almost shaking as he made his points. He didn't do badly, but he needed to do more than okay.

For the first time I thought McCain looked really old tonight. It seemed magnified to me. His eyes looked very red/glassy at times, too. He came off as the rude guy that always had to get the last word in, whether he was supposed to or not. In the middle part of the debate, my wife and I counted 3 straight subjects where he got to make the last point. Seemed pretty unfair to me, but Obama appeared gracious about it.

I don't know. I hate to pick on the guy because of his appearance because it should be about so much more than that. But once again, he did not present himself well, IMO. He looks extremely uncomfortable, especially when he walks, probably due to his old service wounds. I wish it weren't true, but it is. His obvious, constant disdain for Obama reminded me a great deal of the 2000 debates, when Al Gore showed his disgust for Bush with audible sighs and eye rolls. Ask Al how that worked out for him.

As an aside, I absolutely hate what the guy has become. He should have been able to retire as a man who served his country admirably for a long time. But he ended up embracing the Bush doctrine when it was popular (post 9/11) and hooked his wagon to it. He is now paying the price. One of my greatest disappointments in McCain is that after what Rove and Bush did to him in 2000, he forgave them and joined up. They basically shit on his family and played up the racial prejudice in South Carolina for votes and McCain forgave them. After all of his rants about "agents of intolerance" he ended up embracing Jerry Falwell when it became the politically expedient thing to do. I lost all faith in him then, realizing that (like most candidates) he would simply do whatever it took to get elected. He's no longer a special man, but a political flunky. That saddens me, because for a time there, he was more than that.

I also think that like Bob Dole, his chance came about 10 years too late.

I still think the election could turn at any moment. I'm not counting any chickens before they properly hatch. But if the polls remain accurate and Obama wins, it'll be sad to see the shell of John McCain slip off into oblivion.