Friday, March 7, 2008

Election Notes . . .

Another evening, another newscast, and it seems as if it's all politics, all the time.

I wonder sometimes if that explains some of the silly, nasty exchanges between the three major candidates now.

Tonight we were treated to stories about how Mr. Obama's staffer insulted Mrs. Clinton; how Mrs. Clinton's staff person reminded us of Whitewater and Ken Starr by comparing Barack Obama to Starr; and a story about an exchange between John McCain, a pesky questioner and later on, a much peskier reporter.

None of these stories clarified any candidate's position on health care, the wars in Iraq or Afghanistan, the price of oil or the unpleasant economy, or really, about anything other than how unpleasant the opposition/reporters/an opponent's history really is.

Even Jim Lehrer was unable to turn the conversation from these unhappy subjects on PBS. In the Shields and Brooks segment – one I usually enjoy – the two reporter/commentators seemed stuck on the political aspects of these exchanges.

Meanwhile I'm still hungry for details about how these candidates propose to lead our nation and address our problems, and curious about whether or not they can maintain a measure of civility and humanity while campaigning for office. It's a tall order. I'll be interested to see if any one of them can fill it.

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