Brynn, I agree with your point of view. But I actually thought Obama's performance on Tuesday was pretty lack luster compared to other Obama performances.

Serena, you are right, Obama no longer has to be miles better just feet will do. No matter how it is sliced both candidates fear making a fatal mistake. No matter how it is sliced this election will have made history. More money spent than what it costs to elect thirty other heads of state. First woman in the executive branch as VP or first black man as president.

Brynn, it is the other angry people I fear. Spurred on by the ignorance leaving the lips of Palin and Mrs. McCain. The ones who yell whenever Obama's name is mentioned. The ones we do not usually hear because they are saying it under their breath.

"Kill him, terrorist!"

Just because the stray mike has picked it up recently does not mean that it has not been being said right along.

John McCain's temper has been legendary around Capitol Hill for years. Given that, his age, the amount of medication he's on, the pressure of the campaign, and his personal sense of entitlement, I'm waiting for the public meltdown when he loses. As time goes on, McCain becomes less and less appealing as a candidate, it becomes more and more obvious that he's willing to sell out to anyone to get the job. Events have conspired against him, and I cannot wait to hear who gets blasted in his concession speech. I bet it will be a memorable Nixonian event.

Have you seen this video yet?

John McCain's Rage is a National Security Concern?

You should.

I ponder about the chance that Obama's "lackluster" performance might have been intentional --- there is a danger in American politics of appearing "too smart": for example, it is said that Adlai Stevenson lost to Eisenhower (twice) because many perceived him as a "egghead" --- too smart in a way that was unappealing to some, in other words.

And right before this election is the time that a potentially "too smart" candidate needs to "dumb down" --- having won over the intellectual set that he will, he needs to do what it takes to appeal to a less common denominator (hopefully not the lowest common denominator). Fancy oratory might get him into the spotlight, but toward the end it might be useful to talk in monosyllables that everyone understands.

Now, this notion may seem cynical, but ... well, that's life in the political spotlight.