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Saturday, September 27, 2008

The Old and Ugly Candidate

I watched the debate yesterday between Barack Obama and John McCain and I made a dramatic realization; McCain is old. As I watched him pre-Alzheimer his way through the debate, I could just see him forgetting his argument and chewing on his toothless gum. His hair looked thin, real thin. His injured arm even more non-functional as he waved it in derision.

Folks have gotten all wrapped up in the various issues; Palin, Iraq, the economy, Afghanistan, but I am stuck in old. Just plain old, in fact cantankerously old, a fossil. Forget the years of experience, the foreign policy, the heroism as a POW in Vietnam, he's just an old man. It won't be long before he forgets his lines, and starts asking who the people around him are.

The race to the White house is not really a black and white issue or one hitched on the back of economic discourse. It is not about liberal or conservative viewpoints. It does not warrant delving into the quagmire of re-establishing America's station in the world view. It has little to do with national security, or if we can actually envision Sarah Palin deciding whether this country should go to war. Let alone, what her husband will do if she gets to be Vice President. What exactly is the step up job from snow-boarder?

No, this election is simply about a handsome educated black couple who happen to tower, both in height and intellect their white rivals. More firmly, it's about an old, slightly infirm, ex-Bush cheerleader and his knack for surviving tragedy. Many years ago he walked away from a POW camp to freedom. We commend him for that. It's now time he realize that he can't walk away from his age or his tired looks; but he can walk away from this election. He needs to do this quickly, before he starts to forget there is an election.