Wednesday, October 8, 2008

The Great Debaters



David and I decided to watch the debate at a Bainbridge Island bar, to see if we'd catch any commentary from locals. One woman sat down in a cloud of smoke next to me and said.

"If he says "my friends" one more time I'm going to kill myself."

"I think we should count how many times he says it, " I told her.

"You know, it would be a good drinking game to take a shot every time he says "my friends."

No, I didn't go that far, but the phrase did annoy me. I don't think of a Presidential candidate as my friend. I want this person to be my superior, with their intellect, passion, vision and experience. I want to look up to this person, have them be my guiding light, a role model for the common people. Maybe this person does think of the American public as his "friends", but he said it so often, that both David and I found it to be condescending. What did you think about that?
Another joy of watching a debate in the bar is the draft beer. My eyes wandered behind the bar, and there are clowny caricatures of Obama and McCain, nozzles for beer. McCain smiled grandly in his navy uniform, Obama stood on a "soap box" with a crown. It was great, and I cracked up, but chose the nuetral beer, Pyramid Hefeweizen.

Okay, there are people sitting in my "ferry bench" that are taking about the presidential race and feminism and Sarah Palin and I'm totally trying my very hardest not to completely freak out and deck someone. DO NOT VOTE FOR SOMEONE BECAUSE SHE HAS THE SAME ANATOMY, PLEASE!!! That's like me voting for Obama because he's black, or McCain because he had skin cancer 25 times.

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Erick watched the debate with me - well, part of it, until he retreated backupstairs to do his homework which he found even less boring - and the thing that stood out for him, also, was McCain saying "my friends". I don't find it condescending, however, it is not an appropriate use of the word because he is not our "friend". I'd even rather have him use the well-worn My Fellow Americans. More accurate. Better yet, nothing. One of McCain's problems is a complete lack of charisma.

Contact Travis said...

I havent read any debate analysis, but my firs impressions were these:

McCain's new 'bail out for homeowners' sounds like a good idea, but how can we afford it? how will he pay for it? and really isnt there already something on the books like that?

Obama did a masterful job of standing up to all McCain's attacks. Setting the record straight about his past and his voting history.

McCain did however outmatch Obama on foreign policy. Obama's answers seemed wandering and without a lot of specifics. I wish he would have reassured us he has hundreds of top notch advisors on the subject etc...if Madds Albright is a supporter...I rest much easier.

On style...McCain came across as...well..kind of a frankenstein's monster to Obama's JFK.

Now I'll go read the 'real' pundits and I'm sure I got it all wrong.

andrea said...

We missed the first 15 minutes cuz we were out getting Mexican take out and hopped in when he was talking about foreign policy. We too got annoyed with the "my friend" thing because the more he said it, the more it started to get twisted into something condescending, just like Biden's "let me repeat that". McCain makes me uncomfortable while he's on stage because he *looks* like he's uncomfortable. I too completely agree that McCain has more experience in foreign policy, but I don't necessarily think that's a good thing. Perhaps its time to change things up, and as Obama said, speak with these people in a respectful manner. And I completely agree on Obama's health care reform. If I like my health insurance, I can keep it, if not, I can get the same insurance a senator does. I think it's a right to be healthy, just like it's a right to be free. All health care should be equal and good. Not better if you can pay for better. Good for all.
In the end, it was a bit boring though.

- A - C - said...

I watched the debate on nytimes.com today, and .. may God have mercy of Americans (and of us all) if they choose to be represented my McCain.
My only regret is that I am obviously not eligible to vote.

As far as foreign policy, one may be more experienced than the other, BUT
what you really need is the right attitude. and Obama has it!

Well, you may always opt for the far more experienced Palin, who happens to be soooo proficient on this topic as well as many others.
The only good thing about her is the wealth of parodies on TV. An absolute must-see is this one:

http://www.nbc.com/Saturday_Night_Live/video/clips/couric-palin-open/704042/

Kristin said...

Yeah, we noticed McCain looked pretty old, and waddled around the stage. He did look uncomfortable.

Also, AC, I've watched those Palin spoofs and they are GENIOUS!Interesting to see how people feel about this election who are not living in the US.

andrea said...

Getting an non-American point of view on the election is always interesting. But heck, I have friends (from the South) who are voting for McCain and I can *see* why, but I don't agree. It just depends on your priorities and what's most important to you. If overturning Roe vs. Wade is your most important cause, well then McCain/Palin is your man/woman. I can *see* that, but for me, health care and EDUCATION (to prevent the use of the rights granted by Roe vs. Wade) are key.

Dan-Eric Slocum said...

I thought my favorite anchor on the planet *seriously*-- Tom Brokaw-- did a terrible job. Just awful.