I still say his undertaker did a shit embalming job.

Felicity says this about how Nixon looked,

•  “..Nixon - five-o’clock-shadow, sweat streaming down his face, looked like a cross between Darth Vador and Hannibal Lector..”

I don’t know, since I missed that debate. (couldn’t vote anyway…only in the 3rd or 4th grade at the time) but I think the description is perfect for McCain.

Now mackTN says this about how McCain looked:

•  “McCain looked dead, a painted corpse.”

And, if it wasn’t for the rolling eyeballs and the fidgeting, I would agree. Rolling eyeballs and grimaces from a corpse would pretty much scare the shit out of me. But then, McCain basically DOES scare the shit out of me, and so does his side-kick, Sarah Palin.
nrobi,

I would LOVE to observe a debate between you and unregistered ED, but it’s obvious that Ed will never take you up on the offer.

Thanks for your very informed comments. Always a delight to hear reasoned and logical discourse.

As for the number of Americans who can’t read, I don’t know where he got those statistics from either, but I’m going to find out for you. After the first of the year, I’ll begin (I hope) a community service job teaching adults to read. (An Americore like project, sponsored by our local library system, and I’m excited about it).

But of course those actual statistics aren’t even relevant, since we allow ALL people to vote, whether they know how to read or not, and we know perfectly well that the ability to read does NOT guarantee an informed vote. (I’m sure the majority of those voting for Dick Bush the last two times probably know how to read..doesn’t mean they can think.)

This reminds me of one of the many tales and stories from the campaign trail that a dear friend has shared with me. Her son, (he’s 38 years old) took a leave of absence from his corporate job about 7 months ago, to become more involved in the Obama campaign. She was very proud of him, as I have been. He frequently provides us with stories of some of his experiences, and he shared one about an elderly fellow that he was helping with the process of making his ballot choices recently. (He didn’t say if the fellow couldn’t read, or if his vision was poor, or what the specifics were, besides him being elderly.)

As they went through the choices (measures, propositions, and allthe old guy told him to just make sure he marked the president choice for ‘that colored boy’. Repeated it a few times, according to my friend’s son. And of course my friend’s son explained to the old gent that he would be sure to do exactly that.

If you judge age by ideals, ability to run with them, and to land on the solid ground of achievement at a very convincing level of meaning what he says when he offers an agenda to put the country on track, Nader is the youngest, but the birthdate calendar says older, but if you look at the proposed agenda, which offers the strongest future with the most growth and best, most likely to succeed wisdom of upholding the U.S. Constitution as entirely valid?

Nader at 74 is the most young in his ideals and achievements showing that he means to run on his ideals.  This time, I am hoping he will win the majority that is due the proper result of a “vote for Nader” to net a President, not party control against public interest, which is what the Democrats and Republicans have tried, and copied each other to the level of cynicism and crass commercialism without any regard for international law and order, or law and order regarding proper use of taxes.

War is not proper use of taxes, and beyond two years is not allowed, and neither is the decision, the Constitution protects a democracy which is supposed to spend taxes on the public services due from the government for the people. 

Because Nader is honorable, he understands proper policy and is able to deliver it with knowledge and wisdom of youthful strength carried forward for himself and for politics to deliver honest votes for majority rule for a government for people, not corruption.

corruption is the product of those who lose their ideals and abandon them with the destruction of everything that matters…Nader has always held the strong sword of invincible ideals. 

His appeal is to those who want what is right and on track, intelligently, with honor and insight, and with the refusal to compromise ideals especially when there is no cause.

There is no reason not to uphold the U.S. Constitution and to use taxes for proper purposes, nor to keep Bush when he should be impeached.  The U.S. Constitution is there for the BENEFIT of us, not the selfish insanity and danger of a President who ignores his duties described and creates his own agendas against everyone’s safety.  Bush is either incompetent or malicious - he is not for world order and has shown complete disdain for proper leadership.

A President who leads with ideals and honor is offering the strength of the youngest “old” that will indeed win the battle of ideals over corruption facing all voters to win with the elected President most able to deliver on youth and the ideals which are protected in the U.S. Constitution’s Office of President.  No war declared, no red ink, both are not allowed.

Nader knows this.

Considering the excessive times Joe-the-Plumber’s name was invoked during the last debate, and further considering the thousands of times the so-called media pundits invoked his name after the debate and as late as Saturday night, October 18, I am inclined to believe that Joe-the-Plumber is the real winner of the debate and the election in general.

Now McCain and Obama, whoever wins the election, should give Joe-the-Plumber the contract to fix the White House plumbing problem, for I happened to believe that the White House plumbing must have gone terribly bad lately that the pipes started to ooze some intoxicants that adversely affect the mental judgment of the White House occupant!

This way Joe-the-Plumber gets to realize his American dream with this hefty contract and the occupant of the White House might be saved the harmful intoxicants! A win-win-situation!

Louise

Speaking of performance, I recall the Nixon-Kennedy debate.  Those who heard it on the radio, gave it to Nixon.  Those who saw it on tv gave it to Kennedy.

Nixon - five-o’clock-shadow, sweat streaming down his face, looked like a cross between Darth Vador and Hannibal Lector.  Kennedy - expertly made-up, clean, vigorous, a young Galahad riding forth on his white steed to save the Republic.  (It wasn’t by accident that his reign evoked the image of Camelot.)

To continue, Ed, I would gladly like to have a debate with you on the subject of your choice and as regards the current situation, would be excessively happy to debate you in your choice of forums or forum.
It would give me great pleasure to show you that the people of America are not as you think, uninformed and all escapist, with a penchant for unreadable or pop-culture literature.
Should you choose to do so, please let me know when and in what forum you would like to continue this debate, for I am ready, willing and able to soundly defeat you with facts and not with emotions or ad hominem attacks on your character.
Ed, it is without doubt, that you sir, as stated before are an ex-Grand Orgy Party member, has had to switch affiliations, to the Libertarian Party. The stated reason being, that John McCain, chose as his running mate the dumbest bunny on the planet and is now in danger of losing any of the marbles that he had left. In which case, Ms.Palin, would then be the president, to the detriment of the whole planet and this countries standing in all the world.
I sir, am surprised that, you have not made the switch to the Democratic Party, for they through a rigorous process, called rightly the primaries, have chosen the next president of the U.S.
I loathe the day, that a person, John McCain, chose to stick his head in the sand and associate with the lunatic fringe of the far right wing christian lunatics of the Grand Orgy Party.
Mr. McCain, degraded himself, by seeking the “anointing” of this group of people, and by choosing Sarah Palin, finished the job of loosing the moderate and undecided voters, this happening in a flame of despair and defeat.

felicity,

You are correct, mainstreammedia does have to create controversy. But more than that, they have to create news. It’s not easy filling up 24 hours, seven days a week with “news” especially when you keep real reporters on a leash, rather than out looking for a scoop. Ergo, endless babble about mindless babble, trying to make the insanity sound sane.

MSNBC can be annoying at times. That’s why I just watch Olbermann and Rachel Maddow. They always give me a laugh, and sometimes laughing works better at keeping the boogieman away than a cross, or a curse. Chris Mathews generally has opposing sides, so-as to be “fair” but even he [and they] had little positive to say about McCains performance. [then or since] And I think that’s key here ... the whole thing is a performance, so we rate the candidates on who gave the better performance.

Since this particular performance, [economy, war and terror aside] seemed more at directing us to view who was more “presidential” Obama clearly won. Most folks don’t have a clue what’s going on, but they’re scared. Those folks want someone in the White House who stays calm and maintains absolute control, no matter how nasty those around him can be.

Obama was cool, engaged yet detached enough from the obvious inane comments from McCain, to respond thoughtfully with factual information. Information McCain really couldn’t refute, although he seemed to think if he just said the same thing over again, in spite of being corrected, somehow he’d look tough and aggressive. He didn’t. He looked silly and desperate.

I guess it all depends on what time you watch cable news, which is why I simply don’t for the most part. But this time I did watch MSNBC, because of Olbermann and Maddow. I also jumped back and forth to see what the focus group on CNN and PBS had to say. Thats when I heard the lament I mentioned in my earlier post, which I believe came from a guy from the right.

Fox had a graph showing feedback coming in from their viewers. McCain was ahead by some 99% which is why I had a good laugh! Sadly there are a lot of folks out there who believe FOX is the only news channel on TV. But believe it or not FOX ratings are tumbling. And I think we can credit the web for that. Even brainwashed people can be reached if you can separate them from their abuser. In this case FOX.

However, all in all as I channel hopped, clearly the majority gave the debate to Obama. Even McCain supporters were a bit worried. And as he and Palin continue to feed shit into the fan, they aren’t looking for a McCain win. [They’re looking for umbrellas] And asking, what can he/we do? Is it too late?

But like Obama said, we cant relax now. Repubs fight dirty and the kidney punch could still come, if we turn our backs.

To Ed the unregistered commenter:  For some reason the facts seem to elude you, it may be that 50% of Americans do not read, (I would certainly like to find out where you have obtained your figures), but reading anything is better than reading nothing.
In serious times like these, with an economic meltdown, wars that America is unable to sustain, disastrous foreign policy, a health care crisis that expands by the minute and all of the liberties that have been lost for “Securities sake,” escapism is one of the most viable and needed alternatives to ever-increasing bad news.
Ed, you seem to think that reading Harry Potter, Nora Roberts and John Grisham, are bad, what do you purport we read?
As for not knowing the facts of the world as we are now experiencing, Ed, I more than some am aware of the growing crises and still have time to read works of fiction including Harry Potter and John Grisham, as well as books that are informative and enlightening. 
You sir, sound like a disgruntled Republican, who has had to switch to the Libertarian Party and know that your vote will count for nothing. You are the one with your head in the sand, and as regards your ideas, sir, you have a long way to go before you can debate a person like me, who is informed and aware of all the happenings around the world.
As regards Mr. Robinson’s article, he again is spot on in his assessment of the debates. Mr. McCain, has yet to prove that he is anything other than an angry old man, who thinks that he is entitled to the presidency, because he lost the primaries to the shrub in 2000. 
Mr. McCain, has shown himself, to be, something other than what he purported. He is now in the pockets of the Far Right Wing Christian Lunatic Fringe of the Republican Party, which is not the party that I grew up knowing. This is quite clear to me as Christopher Buckley, son of the revered and “sainted” Mr. William F. Buckley Jr., has come out in an article in the Daily Beast, as giving his support to Barack Hussein Obama.
The GOP of yesteryear, has gone and is now replaced with a “tax and spend,” party that knows no bounds in the pursuit of Bigger and Badder Government.
Under the current administration, we the people, who give the power to government, have lost so many of our rights that, we are now living in a proto-fascist state. The government is even listening to Amerikkkans phone conversations without so much as a warrant or any oversight by a judge or the Congress.
Both the Judiciary and Legislative branches of government have forsaken their Constitutional authority and we now have an imperial president, who if given the chance would suspend the Constitution and Bill of Rights, and suspend any election, that would have taken place and declare himself King for life.
I have yet to see any reason why this would not happen, and now with the Northern Command having a brigade of soldiers at their beck and call, hope that this does not happen. Further, the bill, House Resolution 1955, The Homegrown Terrorism and Radicalization Act, does away with the Bill of Rights and suspends any freedoms that the American public has in case of disaster or political unrest.
Along with the denial of our right to assembly, this bill suspends any of our rights to resort to the courts for redress of our grievances and does not allow through “force of logic,” the ability to change the minds of the people or Congress.
Should you doubt me, check the House Bills that have passed this year, and you will be scared and amazed that this bill sponsored by Jane Harmon, R Cal., passed by an amazing margin of 404-6.
With an overwhelming majority of the House giving credence to this obscenity, we are now living in a fascist state, just waiting to happen.
Ed, is this enough of the facts that you purport that the American people do not know and are hiding their collective heads in the sand about?

Louise - nope, MSNBC.  Fox is obvious to the point of being irrelevant.  Other media are not obvious which makes them potentially far more successful at propagandizing - and spreading misinformation. 

Media have to create controversy in order to stimulate the viewer’s natural fascination with conflict and thus keeps his interest - and loyalty to a channel.

And he wants to have town hall meetings, yet. Is he not getting it? It almost hurts to much to watch and listen to him. I use to be able to mute the TV now that doesn’t even work.

I didn’t see his attacks as relentless. I saw them as irratic and dis-jointed. There were times he very nearly rambled and came close to drooling. And that fixed smile and the eye-ball rolling, intended I suppose to emphasize his kinda lost point, only emphasized his age.

I did not see his clenched teeth as a cover for his anger or bad temper. But I did see his rapid eye blinking as a dead giveaway he knew he was lying. Rapid blinking, clenched teeth. I guess that’s what lying through your teeth means.
Am I the only one who noticed him rub his nose downward between his thumb and forefinger when he spoke of Kennedy? Another dead giveaway the man was lying. And turns out he was. ‘Cause the story he related was completely untrue. Like so much he says, he just made it up.

So yeh, he sounded pretty bad, but worse than he looked? I think it’s a toss-up. But the two combined placed him firmly, even behinder.

felicity, were you watching FOX?

The pundits I heard pretty much called the whole thing for Obama. And frankly had very little positive to say about McCain. Eugene Robinson pretty much echoed what most of the talking heads were saying. I even heard one guy [I think it was on CNN] say he almost felt sorry for McCain, because his efforts to look tough and aggressive made him look a little lost and silly.

Another said it’s pretty obvious McCain thinks he’s earned the presidency [he’s been trying for ten years] and he’s so angry because he sees it slipping away he runs the danger of completely discrediting himself with the use of Palin and the negative attacks.

Didn’t hear a whole lot of praise, except when I checked over on FOX. Had a good laugh and moved on.

Jim Yell - I agree.  And after listening to some of the so-called pundits following the so-called debate, I felt insulted by the media.  Their praise of McCain’s performance, their projection that his performance would prove the better of the two, their utter disregard of his nonsense while concentrating on what little tidbits of sense he uttered and then judging his entire performance accordingly had me wondering if we had watched the same event.

Not only have we been insulted by Republican (and some Democrat) politicians for 8 years, the media have added to and enhanced their insults.

I’ll Take that Reference as a Compliment. Being of Jacobite heritage.
What an Absolutely perfect comparison Ah?
Not only Political strife, but Economic and Religious ramifications.
Didn’t some Jacobites practice a Religious doctrine which refused to bow down to Either the Catholics or the English Protestants Heirarchial Rule? In fAct did not even have a Heirachy within their ‘church’-Egalitarian. what would become of such current Duelistic leaders as Dobson, Hagee had to share their Pulpits. We couldn’t Pry the microphones out of their Cold dead hands-Egomaniacs
I still have plenty to learn about my Heritage, but so far it has provided me with Historical Conviction and Ancestorial Pride.
Bottoms Up!

Yes, I do agree with the essence of the title of this piece! However, I am not sure which is worse his looks or his words and speech. Let me put it this way: He’s terrible and evil through and through, and I am lamenting the fortunes of my adopted homeland for not being able to produce a better and more decent individual to run for the highest office!

Sad indeed!