I finally watched the highlights of the Democratic National Convention. Thanks, Tivo and C-SPAN.
I think that John Kerry’s speech was well written. His delivery was timed perfectly for sound bites. His delivery was not timed well for a live audience. In the interest of sounding commanding, he rushed through the applause. Edwards did a much better job with the crowd. But neither could touch Al Sharpton. Sharpton stole the show. It’s too bad that someone who can speak with such passion won’t be elected. We don’t really like passionate leaders in the U.S.
However, have you heard Dick Cheney speak? His charisma is a black hole, sucking others’ charisma away from them and away from reality altogether. One gets the feeling that Cheney is a character from a role-playing game and his main trait is that he sucks the life out of everyone in a 20 mile radius, hiding it in an alternate dimension.
Kerry is not as good a speaker as Sharpton. Or Clinton. But I feel better about Kerry than I did about Gore. The times are very different, and the current administration has made some serious mis-steps. Picking Edwards was the best thing Kerry could have done.
Finally, I love the tack of the Democratic Party. For once, they appear to be taking the moral high ground with strength. The irony of this maneuver could possibly go down in history, if it works, and if they stay the course. Bush has shrouded himself in Jesus. But Jesus didn’t decide to send troops to their deaths in Iraq. Jesus didn’t decide to try to spin the war after weapons of mass destruction weren’t found. Jesus didn’t try to take the wind out of the Kerry campaign in a possibly nefarious manner. After listening to the hopeful language of the Democratic Convention, it’s hard not to feel like we can turn a corner, because the language of the other side is not about hope, but about fear.
There will never be a perfect candidate. Humans are not perfect. The beauty of the system is that we are forced to make compromises when we vote. We are forced to weigh out the decision. It is this effort that keeps people from voting. It’s too much work. However, the beauty of the system is that when the apathy is at it’s peak, and the President is selected by the Supreme Court, the voters have a chance to wake up; to do the work and cast their vote.
This is all very pedantic. Apologies for fans of Heather, Leta and Chuck. I have a political jones that rears it’s head every four years. Living in Utah, I know Kerry won’t take the state. But, if I don’t vote, my voice isn’t heard. And I want to be heard this year even more than I did in 1992.
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