Thoughts on the DNC

So the Democratic National Convention is finally in town, and as fascinated as I am by presidential politics, I haven't summoned the courage to fight the traffic and head downtown yet. Curious as to what exactly the protesters are protesting, curious as to how many celebrities are cruising Larimer Square, curious to see if anyone's hiring for over-educated, under-employed interns. (Yep, still looking - and it's nearly Labor Day, how ironic. But I digress.) But so far I've avoided the whole thing, other than staying home to watch the talking heads and getting excited to see Union Station in the background. Although I haven't done much more than stick a couple yard signs out front, I do intend to get more involved in the campaign process during the next few weeks. Would hate for this whole thing to come down to swing state Colorado going for McCain by the slimmest of margins and knowing I could have canvassed more neighborhoods and made more phone calls. It amazes me that this is even a possibility - who the hell are these 45% of the voters who are supporting McCain? Even more mystifying, who are the 12-15% still undecided?? Boggles my mind. I guess people just really aren't paying attention, at all. If they were, McCain would be 20 points behind.

I grew up in Arizona, where McCain has been our Senator for many years. I disagreed with him on many issues but I always respected him, and was disappointed he didn't get nominated in 2000. (Still would have voted for Gore, but I would have thought about it.) But that was eight years ago, and something has gone terribly wrong with the man. The John McCain of 2008 is no Maverick. He has cozied up to Bush on nearly every single issue - except climate change, thankfully - and appears to have lost any sense of independent spirit or innovation. He is uninformed, dangerously out of touch for today's technology-based global economy (never uses a computer?!), and often seems confused, tired and bitter. It's sad to see - I can't remember a public figure looking and sounding more tired and worn out, a total retread of a candidate. He simply doesn't have the vision, intelligence, or judgment to lead this country in the 21st century. Obama may have some on-the-job learning to do, but I trust his judgment far more than the empty shell that once was the 'Maverick'.

Along those lines, this post really troubled me. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/chris-kelly/the-mccaine-mutiny_b_121034.html Chris Kelly is normally a scathingly funny writer, but here he pegs the current incarnation of McCain to a T, and it's frightening. Horrifying thought, really, that this guy has a serious shot at the White House - whether it's because the Democrats eventually implode due to Hillary Pumas gone wild, or Obama foolishly veering toward the center and pissing off the base when 80% of the nation thinks we're on the wrong track, or just simple, old school, redneck racist fear of some black Muslim dude with Hussein in his name. God help us...