The American Spectator

Sally kept insisting Obama had good judgment so I asked what judgments he had ever made. She couldn’t point to any examples. I brought up the fact that his first really big decision was his choice for a vice presidential candidate, and I said he blew it. The right decision would have been to choose Hillary Clinton, who would have unified the party and attracted undecided women to the ticket, but Obama chose Biden, who brings nothing to the ticket.

In fact, that’s the reason Joe Biden can make so many mistakes and nobody cares. He brings nothing to the ticket. If he flubs it, it doesn’t damage the ticket. It’s all Obama on the Democrat side. It’s different with Sarah Palin. She brings a lot of excitement to the Republican ticket, and a poor performance on her part would have damaged it. Not a few of us had jitters before the debate.

Finally, Sally admitted she supports Obama because of his policy positions. I said why she didn’t say that in the first place. I don’t have a problem with people who support candidates based on their positions. They may be wrong, but at least it’s a rational view on how to decide which candidate to support. Merely supporting someone for their style, or looks, or charisma is how stupid people decide.

In fact, one of my pet peeves is Frank Luntz and his undecided voters. The fact is undecided voters are the stupidest people in America. If you can’t tell the difference between Obama and McCain at this point, there’s not much hope for you. And Frank is actually surveying these stupid people to see what they think, as if they ever think. No, they decide on the basis of style, looks, charisma, or for superficial reasons. That’s why they’re stupid. And yet it’s these people the candidates have to appeal to in order to win an election. Disgusting.

p>My conclusion about the debate is that if McCain loses this election, it won’t be over for Sarah. When the next Republican primaries are held four years from now, Sarah will be the top player in the field. While she did a lot for the Republican ticket Thursday night, she also did a lot for herself. br> — Vern Crisler br> Gilbert, Arizona /p> p> I read with interest Peter Freire’s article entitled “The Barracuda Bites Back.” I am a conservative Democrat and a voter whom I believe McCain wanted on his side of the voting ledger this election cycle. Unfortunately, McCain and Palin are not getting it done for me. First, Gwen Ifill would have moderated the debate fairly regardless of her upcoming book, as had already been determined by the McCain campaign back in July. Palin’s clearing of the bar that had already been set up for her on the bottom floor in the underground parking garage had nothing to do with Gwen Ifill holding back. Second, I find it offensive that somehow you believe Joe Biden felt he could not attack a woman. If any woman running for political office can’t stand the heat, stay out of the kitchen. Did anyone object to McCain’s condescending and contemptuous attitude toward Obama on Sep 26th. No, because they were perceived as equal sparring partners on the stage. The same obviously cannot be said for Palin and Biden, as for some reason Palin, the delicate flower, had to be handled with kid gloves. Finally, by Peter Freire’s assessment, Katie Couric was the main problem in Palin’s CBS interview and not Palin. Freire somehow believes Palin should be interviewed by journalists who will let Palin off the hook on matters of national security, foreign policy, the economy and Supreme Court decisions, and ask more questions about the car pools for hockey practice and how expensive milk is at Pick’nSave. Perhaps Palin will find such a journalist at her local middle school after she returns to Alaska on November 5th. br> — Theresa Seem br> Glendale, Wisconsin /p> p>