|
|
September 26, 2008Debate ReactionsAnn Althouse is liveblogging the debate.. So is STACLU and Ace. I frankly don’t have the energy for hyper-live-blogging as I did with the convention. I may pop in a remark here and there, but check back for reaction roundups! May the best man win; and no games, please. CNN has piecharts with instant pundit feedback. I hate that. Let’s allow people to think about their own reactions before they have to process gasbag reactions! Does Obama think the president has a line-item veto? Why does he want the world’s love, instead of the world’s respect? I wrote about that just the other day. Don’t like that. I’m following comments at Ace and Althouse. Very funny and obscene at Ace, very smart at Althouse - my favorite of the night, from an Althouse commenter:
That was an enjoyable, fast-moving and well-done debate. Kudos to Jim Lehrer, best moderator I’ve seen in ages. My husband’s assessment: They reminded him of that old cartoon with the bulldog walking along and the little yappy dog running beside him, with the bulldog knocking him aside saying, “ahhh, shaddup.” One thing: Obama said he did support nuclear power, but didn’t think Yucca Mountains were appropriate for storing waste. That’s a game. The truth is if Yucca is not appropriate than no place is appropriate to store nuclear waste. So, bottom line, Obama does not support nuclear energy. The talking heads say there were no “memorable” lines. I think McCain’s remark about how he doesn’t even have a seal yet, and “Sen. Obama does not know the difference between a strategy and a tactic” were pretty memorable, but not in a “there you go again” way. Geraghty sort of agrees. Obama was not awful; he seemed out of his league a few times, mostly on economics. McCain was surprisingly strong on economics, unsurprisingly strong on military issues. What was key here was that McCain was speaking from history and experience; Obama was talking from policy bull sessions. McCain was speaking from a place of wisdom come from age, Obama seemed a bit young at times. McCain was speaking, often, like a man talking to other men and women. Obama seemed like a policy wonk, with good notes. I’m not trying to be mean about Obama. McCain just seemed more alive, and more authentic. Clear, direct and sure of himself. Also, I had a sense of scope with McCain. He talked about the past because he has been part of it, and he talked about the future - a lot. Obama has no past, talked too much about the past, and too much about Bush. He’s not running against Bush. My bottom line: I want McCain answering the phone at 3AM. Here’s a fast video - amazingly fast - as Surber says: I note that even Chris Matthews is saying McCain won this thing. That’s not surprising to me, really, because Matthews is a sentimental Irish fellow who loves pubhouse debate, and that’s really what McCain offered. But the overall reality: McCain, by doing well, simply saved himself. Things are still trending Obama, especially with the people who feeeeeel more than think. Instapundit has the big roundup Many of the Althouse commenters remarked on the way Obama said “Pakistan” and “Taliban.” A few wondered about it, and one or two hinted that it “betrays” his “secret Muslim heritage” which I think is silly, but I am polling that, too - did you like it, hate it, not care? http://theanchoressonline.com/2008/09/26/debate-reactions/trackback/ 25 Responses to “Debate Reactions” |
September 26th, 2008 at 9:22 pm
I’m doing a little live-blogging in between picking up teens from work and making dinner. I think McCain is doing great so far. (That’s my own reaction; haven’t seen the gasbags’ reactions yet…)
September 26th, 2008 at 9:52 pm
You ask for unfiltered reactions.
I give Senator McCain points for acknowledging repeatedly that this country has been engaged during the Bush administration in the unspeakable business of torture — something neither the administration nor the greater number of its apologists have ever been able to bring themselves to admit.
I’d personally like to see the President, Vice-President and several present and former officials packed in salt and transported to the Hague via tramp steamer, but I recognize that this is unrealistic, and am prepared to settle for having their record decisively repudiated in forty days.
Incidentally, I stand by my initial warm approval (posted here at the time) at the selection of Governor Palin for the second slot. I have belatedly viewed her interview with Couric, in which she has exceeded my fondest hopes: truly a bottomless fount of delight. I wish the GOP’s campaign the joy of her, to borrow a tagline from the splendid Aubrey-Maturin novels (I commend these to you, A, if you are not yet familiar with them: they are books Jane Austen might have read with pleasure).
[Good heavens, Rand, of course I've read the Aubrey novels. I know you're feeling all warm and puddly about Palin, but I think she'll be okay if they just let Palin be Palin. - admin]
September 26th, 2008 at 9:57 pm
I think McCain did great. Like his convention speech Mac grew over time. Barack diminished as he went along.
September 26th, 2008 at 10:24 pm
I think McCain was very strong, particularly in foreign affairs. I did not understand why he was so dead set against looking at Obama. I think he should have really done so. Obama addressed him numerous times and McCain did not even so much as acknowledge him. Hmmm, it came across immature, I thought.
I think Obama certainly held his own and there is no doubt that the man is intelligent. I think this debate did show again that Obama tends towards naivete and inexperience though. McCain pointed this out straight to the point. McCain has so much experience in politics and the difference between him and Obama were made very clear again.
This is such a tough raise. I have to be honest and say that Palin as a potential President of the United States scares me. Yet, Obama scares me too. Who scares me more, is what I must asked myself. Next weeks debates will be interesting.
September 26th, 2008 at 10:28 pm
Debate Reactions?
I tuned in a few minutes before, saw that they had the exact same stage set-up that they always have, and I was immediately bored out of my gourd — before either candidate even appeared. Didn’t watch even a second of it, except to flip over to one of the stations now and then to see if it was over.
As for MSM reactions? those were already written before the debate.
As for Palin, I stand by my intial reaction, which is that McCain’s handlers better be smart enough to leave her alone and not try to over-handle her. The very fact that I had to voice such a concern demonstrates that I think that they are not smart enough. If they let Palin be Palin, then she will overshadow McCain. The McCain camp can see that she is already more popular than McCain, so they have worked to muzzle her.
[You know, you're just ridiculously crabby lately. - admin]
September 26th, 2008 at 10:30 pm
of course I’ve read the Aubrey novels.
Sure, Elizabeth, and I was a fool for doubting you.
[Are you suggesting I haven't? I fell in love with Jack Aubrey in Masters and Commanders...also with Russell Crowe, and then had to read them. -admin]
September 26th, 2008 at 10:30 pm
[...] Debate Reactions from TheAnchoressOnline. [...]
September 26th, 2008 at 10:36 pm
Were you bothered by the way Obama said “Pakistan?”
Again, I didn’t watch the debate, but I have heard him pronounce it in a rather pointy-headed pretentious way. Kind of like people who pronounce the country of Chile, not “chilly,” but “chee-lay.” Or the new way that we are supposed to pronounce Niger as “nee-zh-air” rather than with a long I, hard J, “nye-jer.”
Yeah, snobby stuff like that bothers me.
September 26th, 2008 at 11:03 pm
I’ll tell you what Bender, it bothers me, because I think it’s pretentious.
I don’t mind people making an effort to pronounce words as the people do where the words originate. I guess their motivation is what sometimes bothers me.
I’m a proud American who pronounces words like an American—is that bad? I have no ill intent…
I think some people try to diminish some of my arguments because I don’t pronounce words as they are natively spoken.
It doesn’t mean I don’t understand the politics or the plight of a people because I pronounce “I”raq with a hard i, versus er-ack, yet the tolerant people and I say that sarcastically belittle my arguments because they infer it’s ignorant.
It’s an elitist position. And it’s no wonder Obama works so hard to pronounce places like he lives in them… He actually pronounced a couple places like that tonight.
—irascibleChef
September 26th, 2008 at 11:07 pm
snobby stuff like that bothers me
Or like people who say New-clee-are instead of Noo-cue-lurr. Don’t you just hate it when people pronounce things correctly?
Incidentally, maybe it’s just a California thing, but I’m 56, and today is the first time I ever knew that anyone pronounced it “chilly.” Guess it just goes to show how out-of-touch with the monoglot “real Americans” we coastal elites are, nicht wahr?
September 26th, 2008 at 11:34 pm
I’m a proud American who pronounces words like an American—is that bad? I have no ill intent…
I’m sure you have no ill intent, but “pronounces words like an American” — what the hell does that mean? We have vast regional differences already: which is the “American” pronunciation: “wash” or “warsh”? If you want to leave dialects out of consideration and confine the discussion to “foreign” words, do you refer to a military overthrow of a civilian government as a “coop,” or as a “coh-up”? Do you regard those who say “coo” for coup as elitists?
You say “Eye-rack” rather than “Ee-rack.” Why not say “Ira-cue”? Wouldn’t that be your right as an American?
There’s a large world out there that doesn’t speak English, and some of their languages include some diphthongs that most Americans can’t readily wrap their tongues around, and that’s OK. But to wear one’s inability or unwillingness to pronounce a foreign name or word properly as a badge of nativist pride, or worse, to disparage as “elitist” or “pretentious” the readiness of another to handle the legitimate pronunciation strikes me as not much different from the much-derided ghetto prejudice against “talking white.”
September 27th, 2008 at 12:02 am
I enjoyed your take, and generally agree.
I thought, (and this is coming from a big McCain critic), McCain did well in the beginning.
But then it grew concerning.
John McCain is ceding so many positives of what the Republican Party has fought for these past years since 9-11.
This is a huge problem, which may have long lasting problems.
McCain seems to think he can just dump on the Bush Administration as well, (even ceding some bizarre torture claim), but he doesn’t realize what this is going to do in the long run.
McCain has inherited so much from the admirable endeavors of the Bush Administration (even embraced it during the Primary to gain votes in Conservative Circles), and now he continues to run away from it (rather cowardly in my opinion).
It is a huge issue, not only for the GOP, but for the Country, as well as for the McCain Campaign.
It is not Leadership.
In fact, McCain even failed to respond to the idea proposed by Obama, that the USA has lost it’s attractive moral standing-reputation in the World.
Either Senator McCain’s lack of articulate nature, his apparent Beltway ego, a possible suffering in intelligence, or a fear of meaningless poll data, prohibited a sound response from such an outlandish suggestion.
How hard could it be? To simply state, “I am stunned Senator Obama is not interested in the Liberation of the Oppressed, the Freedom of the Iraqi People, and the admirable endeavor which has empowered the now Free Iraqi People to join us in fighting against the same forces who created the 9-11 Tragedy.”
McCain is only reminding me, he will toss anyone away to get ahead.
In the end, it unfortunately appears to an audience, much of Obama’s ugly misrepresentation is accepted as reality. And many eyes are seeing this around the World.
McCain began well, but over time, he looked uninspiring, bitter, aged, and I feel strongly, his rampant Bush Bashing is only going to undermine his own opportunity.
There is a major difference between distancing himself from the Bush Administration, and failing to defend the sound policies that he has inherited which President Bush thankfully conceived and empowered since 9-11.
It is more than ironic, after John McCain was flailing over the economy for awhile, that he eventually went to Washington to hide by the President in a bi-partisan photo-op.
I can only hope, Gov. Palin will not do the same, when confronted with the anti-Republican-Bush-USA diatribe.
Will she take the Maverick direction, and openly accept the debasing of what so many of her supporters have fought for since 9-11?
Would Gov. Palin embrace the same pattern of John McCain, who is openly sharing this constant belittling?
I think she has more class…
McCain’s failure to defend, even the smallest aspect of the Bush Presidency, only increases the potential of the Democrat Opportunity in Nov., as well as within his own Race for the Presidency.
It is truly unfortunate.
September 27th, 2008 at 12:04 am
I thought McCain held back on the economy. It would have been easy for McCain to blast Obama, Dodd and Frank on Freddie and Fannie. Why didn’t he?
Because Country First. A deal needs to be made. This weekend. Such an attack would not help.
September 27th, 2008 at 2:02 am
rcareaga:
Pardon me, I hope I didn’t misinterpret (I’m a little obtuse somethimes) or take your comment the wrong way, but
proves the point: first you misrepresent the point by confusing the comparisons. Then you show us just how smart you are by using your own closed world experience and then cap it by putting down Americans—more to the point, noting how stupid and uncultured Americans are, with your razor wire wit and sarcasm.
At 56, never having heard someone pronounce Chile as “chilly,” maybe you who need to crawl outside your little judgmental California bubble.
As for, “Guess it just goes to show how out-of-touch with the monoglot “real Americans” we coastal elites are, nicht wahr?” yeah, it is so…
—IrascibleChef
I’m a little extra irascible tonight, John McCain’s performance was inspiring!
September 27th, 2008 at 6:42 am
“Things are still trending Obama, especially with the people who feeeeeel more than think.”
Well, I, for one, am certainly prone to over-estimate my capacity to think, and I have been feeeeeeeeeeeeling for some 56 years now so I’m certainly quite practiced in it. But what I do feel [since when I feel I must perforce abandon thinking] is the utter personal comtempt John McCain has for Barack Obama as a fellow Senator and a man.
Like leader, like followers, I suppose.
But I hardly think [not feel, and I do a little rough-and-ready thinking sometimes, as everybody must, even when they are not good at it] that anything in Obama’s public treatment of McCain has ever manifested such contempt for the senior Senator, or has ever warrented such contempt because of the way he has treated McCain as a man.
What I feeeeeeeeeeeeel this implies I won’t say. But I also feeeeeeeeeeeeel that it probably implies the same thing for the followers as for the leader. And I further feeeeeeeeeeeel, that Obama’s conduct in this regard is a fairly clear manifestation of the Golden Rule. What I think [there I go again trying that for which I am not well equipped] McCain’s conduct manifests, I also won’t say.
But, clearly, from your poll, McCain overwhelmingly won the debate, at least among the thinking people of your readership. So much so that were I Obama I would feeeeeeeeeeel so devastated that, next time, it would be me asking to postpone our debate.
I do both think and feel [alternatingly] that the die is cast and that even if some people have not yet decided how to vote, their personal opinions of both candidtates have solidified, so we can turn to the Biden/Palin debate with high expectations, particularly of Saracuda. Biden is still something of a question mark, but I think our opinions of Palin are solidifying pretty quickly.
Turning aside from this, I have been noticing major gaps in my memory and my attention, and major inconsistencies in my mood, which lead me to no longer trust my conduct when writing on the Internet. But I did not want to leave off commenting here without telling the other commentors, and you, how personally enjoyable it has been to receive your hospitality here among so many fine people.
It is my sincere wish that the future brings you ever closer to God and that you can continue to share that journey with the many here who so clearly love you, at least until you decide that the final stages must be travelled silently and alone.
Best Wishes,
Joseph Marshall
September 27th, 2008 at 7:31 am
[...] think McCain won last night, decisively, and I think he’s a human Border Collie. We need him, and he knows it, even if we don’t quite get it yet. Category: Uncategorized [...]
September 27th, 2008 at 7:45 am
When you’re in France, it’s “Par-ee.” When you’re in the U.S., it’s “Par-iss.” Otherwise, yes, you sound pretentious. (Meet me in my “Foy-your” rather than my “Foy-yay.”) Nucyular is fine with me, it’s just a regional accent.
September 27th, 2008 at 8:50 am
Was it just my imagination or did all of the lead questions on FPolicy first go to McCain? I realize that at least 5 times, Obama started his answer with “I agree.” I would have loved to have heard Obamas answer FIRST on some of those questions.
There was lots of “body language” and “actual” language going on that was very telling; elitist telling. The “Pakistan” thing was obvious, but so were the various “names” Obama addressed McCain.
September 27th, 2008 at 9:57 am
Thought at times we had a failure to communicate…
Paul Newman, RIP
September 27th, 2008 at 9:59 am
Come on rcareaga, everyone knows that us crabby Midwesterners are the only ones who pronounce things right. I don’t mean that you must go so far as to say Mizzura or Warshington, but even we know that words like “monoglot” are not even real words.
Now, politicians adopting a whole new voice to say things like “Ah don’ feeeel no waayys tiiirrred . . .” is a whole nother animal.
(crabby??? I’m agreeing with you! not with the crabby part, but everything else)
September 27th, 2008 at 10:44 am
McCain won, I think…
I didn’t watch much of it live. I have seen several clips, and I followed some of the live-blogging, and read the conclusions of others–some of whom thought that, while Barry may not have won, he didn’t lose, either. Mr…….
September 27th, 2008 at 12:25 pm
You started this argument by making fun of GWB. Which really had nothing to do with the comment you were commenting on. You knew what you were doing. “Or like people who say New-clee-are instead of Noo-cue-lurr. Don’t you just hate it when people pronounce things correctly?”
“…pronounces words like an American” — what the hell does that mean?
It means I don’t need to pronounce words a certain way to feel like I’m cultured, worldly, or good about myself, nor to make others feel that way about me. Meaning: I speak the way I speak—happens to be with the dialect from the area I grew up in. I don’t go around like Madonna speaking with a born again British accent—pretentious! But for someone to painstakingly make sure they pronounce each syllable of Pakistan so correctly and then speak with different dialects to different audiences around the country—IS PRETENTIOUS!
From
http://nymag.com/news/politics/21681/index2.html
Obama: “I mean, the fact that I conjugate my verbs and, you know, speak in a typical midwestern-newscaster voice—there’s no doubt this helps ease communication between myself and white audiences,” he says. “And there’s no doubt that when I’m with a black audience, I slip into a slightly different dialect.”
(appears to me that he said what he believes first then thought about what he just said and needed to revise a little—because he realized he’s pretentious!)
Reporter: He turns and stretches his legs for a moment. He’s been facing me this entire car ride, though he’s in the passenger seat and I’m in the back. He turns back around and looks at me again. “But the point is,” Obama says, “I don’t feel the need to talk in a certain way before a white audience. And I don’t feel the need to speak a certain way in front of a black audience. There’s a level of self-consciousness about these issues the previous generation had to negotiate that I don’t feel I have to.”
(the point is, he does feel the need…)
“There you go again,” in the immortal words of Ronald Reagan,
No body mentioned inability nor unwillingness “to pronounce a foreign name or word properly as a badge of nativist pride, or worse, to disparage as “elitist” or “pretentious” the readiness of another to handle the legitimate pronunciation strikes me as not much different from the much-derided ghetto prejudice against “talking white.”
but you do twist, with subtlety, the argument to fit what you wanted to say…
Seems like you’re trying to say that the effort makes you a better person, more evolved(elite) and if you don’t you’re ignorant, a racist—and I’m saying it doesn’t—plain and simple.
You probably consider yourself an intellectual as well… nicht wahr?” (even more pretentious) Hah!
—IrascibleChef
September 27th, 2008 at 1:59 pm
even we know that words like “monoglot” are not even real words.
Oh, dear. Look, Bender, would you mind being the one to break the news to the good folks at the OED, and Merriam-Webster’s, and American Heritage and all the other deluded lexicographers out there who’ve mistakenly included this impostor in their compilations? I’d be too embarrassed.
But no doubt you were actually having recourse here to one of your feathery ironies, and merely making the point that no real person would employ “monoglot” (a nineteenth-century coinage from the Greek monoglottos — monos ‘single’ + glotta ‘tongue’) in spoken or written discourse. This would not raise an eyebrow in my circles, but I did not have the advantage of growing up among sturdy midwesterners. If someone would like to point me to some list setting forth the “real” words (I understand that there are no more than five or six thousand of them, and I suspect, alas, that “irascible” is not among their number) I’d be happy to consult it in future before posting here.
September 27th, 2008 at 3:25 pm
I noticed that McCain was standing on Obama’s left, which means that to face him would be to turn his LEFT side toward the audience and (more importantly) to the cameras. That is his “bad” side, his scarred side, and I’m sure the in-the-tank media would have a field day with the image. I think he was smart to look straight ahead.
As for Chris Matthews, he’s the guy who gets tingles up his legs when Obama speaks - there’s no way he’s going to say anything even slightly complimentary about the rival of the object of his affections. He’s like a 7th grader with his first crush - Tucker Carlson was right.
September 27th, 2008 at 5:38 pm
[...] Candidates Debate? Who cares?, sez this elf. “Who has the fascist Truth Squads?” is the real question. [...]