So yes, I watched the debate between George W. Bush and John F. Kerry yesterday. Well, I watched what I could stomach, which wasn’t much. I have only a few impressions.
So yes, I watched the debate between George W. Bush and John F. Kerry yesterday. Well, I watched what I could stomach, which wasn’t much. I have only a few impressions.
First, I was struck by how much Kerry wanted to kill. He kept mentioning how he wanted to go after and kill the terrorists. I didn’t count the “kill” but I kept hearing it, “kill-blah-blah-blah-terrorists-kill-kill-kill…” (I realize that’s not the most articulate summary, but it’s not bad as a first cut. Sticklers can read the transcript.)
Second, I was struck by how scripted it all was. Debates are supposed to show how candidates handle unscripted moments. But the little lights indicating time limits, the totally controlled rhetoric, the sticking to the talking points and spin. It wasn’t anything unexpected, but I found myself hoping that Bush’s constant repetition of ‘changing positions… changing positions… changing positions…” would goad Kerry into saying something unscripted enough to win him the election. It hit me then that the little noise that lost Howard Dean the nomination was just that — a tiny little unscripted exclamation. Maybe that was Howard Dean’s real crime, allowing himself a second or two that wasn’t thoroughly stage-managed.
I was sure months ago that Kerry was going to win. Now I’m not.
One thing I’m sure you noted
One thing I’m sure you noted was the invisibility of Latin America…completely non-existent in a debate over US foreign policy. And even with their focus on the Middle East, neither major party candidate could bother to say anything (well I may have missed it) about Isreal and the Palestinian situation. And how many times did Kerry say that “90 percent of the casualites and 90 percent of the cost” in Iraq was falling on America. The tens of thousands of Iraqi victims…totally invisible, like the many murdered civilians in Afghanistan. They are shameless. Kerry killed Bush sure on their own imperial terms for what that’s worth. It’s too close to call down here and long past time to start thinking about what do when vote count shenanigans set in. The day after may be more interesting than the day itself.
No Latin America. No sir.
No Latin America. No sir. Talking about Israel/Palestine, there was one phrasing — a little bit unscripted — that I did catch. Kerry was talking about the need to win the war on terror. He said: “It’s important for Israel, it’s important for America, it’s important for the world.”
I couldn’t help but think of George Bush I’s invocation about the New World Order after the first Iraq slaughter known as Gulf War I. He said the US would protect “free markets, free speech, and free elections.”
The order is interesting.
I also like your point about the day after being more interesting than the day of. I was thinking about 2008. I think whoever wins in 2004, 2008 is going to be rough: if it’s Kerry, they’ll be able to say he screwed up the war (because he will, because he won’t withdraw). If it’s Bush, they’ll have had 4 more years to tighten their grip on every institution and take the country closer to a one-party state…
Demonstration elections, anyone?