Sep 30 2004
First debate thoughts
I do not believe there can be any doubt in anybody’s mind that John Kerry appeared stronger and more prepared in tonight’s debate.
It was as the Associated Press reports:
Bush appeared perturbed when Kerry leveled some of his charges, scowling at times and looking away in apparent disgust at others. Kerry often took notes when the president spoke.
George Bush stumbled over his words (which is nothing new), said “um” an awful lot, and appeared to have only one message — that John Kerry sends “mixed signals.” He managed to get that message into nearly every one of his answers.
Senator Kerry, I think, did a fantastic job tonight in dispelling that myth.
If Mr. Bush spent the time preparing for tonight’s debate that his aides say he did, it certainly did not show.
Your thoughts (if you care to share them)?
Update: My favorite blogger from the other side seems to pretty much agree, though he does give Bush the victory 107-103. He also talks about Kerry’s “pompous style,” which I just don’t see. I think Senator Kerry comes across for what he is, a very intelligent and thoughtful man, and does not try to “tone it down.”
Anyhow… here’s what Hindrocket says:
I have Bush by 107-103, with no knockdowns. But, candidly, I don’t think it went that well for the President. I think Kerry helped himself tonight. He came across as a credible candidate, and he was usually on the offensive. Bush’s demeanor while Kerry was talking wasn’t good; anything but commanding. Kerry’s was better, in an odd reversal of what happened four years ago. I think Kerry made headway, and there is plenty of material there for the mainstream media to proclaim the beginning of Kerry’s comeback. An unknown is how Kerry’s pompous style will strike people who haven’t had to listen to him for more than a few seconds at a time, until now.
On the whole, though, I think Kerry helped himself tonight.
But then, I have myself been accused of having a pompous style on occasion. (You were supposed to laugh at that!)
P.S. If you want an example of what real bias looks like, check out Bob Novak’s Debate Blog or this.
10 Responses to “First debate thoughts”
Senator Kerry was not a flip flopper tonight. he was as presidential as I have ever seen him be. GW looked like hell, he looked like his dog died and he had the job of burying him under the porch.
“Umm”, Ummm. Ummm. Ummm. Ummm. Ummm.
Is he that dumb that he cannot talk policy off the cuff. Ummm
Maybe, he should just Umm out of office.
It’s funny reading posts of people who already know what side they are on because you can see the bias. It’s not until you ask someone who honestly doesn’t have a bias that you can see clearly what someone thinks.
One thing that bothered me was Kerry’s use of the phrase “last resort”. Not to put words in his mouth, but it seems his idea of “last resort” is after it’s too late.
He definitely comes off too weak to lead and that’s the main job of a president. The economy and most other issues are unaffected by who sits in the White House. A monkey could have been in the Oval Office during the Clintion Administration and the economy would have still done well.
Where the President’s ability can really affect things is through his leadership. I know so many people who voted for Gore in 2000 and after 9/11 made similar statements that went like, “I’m so glad Bush is president!”
You know why? He makes people feel safe. He’s strong in his values and beliefs. He backs up his words with actions. He doesn’t let popular opinion sway his determination.
And like all good parents, he makes decisions that might not seem popular, but he does it because he feels what he’s doing is best for those he’s in charge of protecting.
Kerry on the other hand reminds me of many parents you see in stores that tells their unruly children, “I’m counting to 3 and if you don’t come here, you’re gonna get it.” Then after counting, they threaten again and again without backing up their words while the child is laying kicking and screaming on the ground.
He also reminds me of the type of parent that gives into his child to look cool or to be popular because that’s more important to him than the safety or character of his child.
So even though I’m not thrilled with the choices of candidates, I’m left to decide between someone who likes to talk a lot and make threats and someone who follows his words with actions.
The man of action is going to win every time.
By the way, did anyone else notice Kerry’s hands shaking during like the first half of the debate?
I have to say, Shane… I love it when somebody starts out a comment like this:
and then proceeds to display their bias.
In all seriousness, though, it is no secret that I do not much care for or believe in George W. Bush. You have only to read back a bit in this weblog to know that. I still think, however, that my analysis of the debate tonight was fair, particular if you watched it split-screen on C-Span. Mr. Bush simply was either not prepared, or he did not take the evening seriously.
Len, you mistake the difference between an opinion and a bias.
An opinion is someone’s thoughts on a subject, where hopefully their thoughts aren’t swayed by some preconceived bias.
That’s all I gave you Len, was my opinion. I didn’t declare who won the debate because unlike most people, I didn’t see a clear winner. It was rather boring with the same rhetoric coming from both candidates.
A bias is defined as a partiality that prevents objective consideration of an issue or situation, which is apparent when either side is declaring one of these candidates a clear winner in this debate. I honestly don’t see much difference.
All I did, was give my opinion on the only thing that matters to me when it comes to these two candidates. I don’t expect either one of them to make sure I live a comfortable life and have a job … that’s my responsibility.
I live in America where anything is possible for me. The only person who can determine how much money I make is ME! If I can’t find a job I like, I’m free to make one for myself.
So unlike most whiny ass cry babies, I don’t look to the President and the Government to make sure I have all of Life’s necessities and pleasures. I know it’s up to me. I only look for them to protect my right to have them and to pursue my dreams and to protect me as a citizen.
Anyway, when I referred to being biased, I wasn’t referring to your post because even though you have a clear bias, you seem fair. Plus, you didn’t declare a winner, just said you thought Kerry did a better job.
It’s true that Kerry is the better orator, he has more experience. But being able to express yourself well doesn’t make you right or right for the job. It’s a known fact that most criminals are very charming, intelligent, and express themselves very well. Think of Hitler, someone that most people in the world agree was a great orator.
So to me, it’s not who’s the slickest guy up there, it’s the guy I feel that’s being the most sincere.
Anyway, that’s another opinion.
What I was saying was that I wasn’t reffering to your post as being biased, but making a general statement.
I had read many other posts from both sides before coming to your weblog and just found it amazing how anyone could declare either one of these guys a winner. The only possible explanation is that they have a bias to begin with. They want the winner to be the person they support, even if they know it’s not true.
Plus, I made that comment in response to many statements being made on CNN at the time I was writing it that were just as biased as the posts I read.
Lastly, I wrote my statement here because this was the last weblog I visited and because it was somewhat aimed at Jamie’s comment.
I take responsibility (unlike most people in the world) for the confusion though because I can understand how you would assume it was directed at you.
Just remember, when you assume, you make an “ass” out of “u” and “me.” =p
By the way, one thing that I find so irritating is Kerry’s lack of knowledge on North Korea. He always fails to mention the fact that Kim Jong Il started his nuclear ambitions again in 1998 … DURING THE CLINTON ADMINISTRATION!!!
Clinton’s administration was going to bomb the factory and put it out of commission, but thought it was too risky because North Korea has thousands of missiles (non nuclear) aimed at South Korea.
So instead of making a tough decision and nipping it in the bud from the beginning, he left it as a problem for the current and even the next administration to clean up.
That’s why I tend to favor a man of action. Someone who knows what has to be done, rolls up his sleeves, digs in, and gets the job done.
So when I hear Kerry condemning the current administration for their policy towards North Korea, he’s also condemning his party’s last administration … which makes me wonder how knowledgable he really is on foreign policy.
Damn it, I cut and pasted and apparently erased the rest of the paragraph that goes:
What I was saying was that I wasn’t refering to your post as being biased, but making a general statement.”
That should have looked like this:
What I was saying was that I wasn’t referring to your post as being biased, but making a general statement that it’s funny and obvious who somone supports because it’s their bias that allows them to see “their” candidate as the clear winner when there really wasn’t one to anyone who isn’t biased to begin with.
Anyway, that’s what my first paragraph was referring to … the debate and people’s opinions of it. I just read and heard lots of opinions on “who won” the debate and found it amazing anyone can declare a winner.
After making a statement about how funny and ridiculous I think it is anyone can declare a winner … I start giving my opinion on one thing that bothered me about the debate. Maybe I should have began my second paragraph, “On another note, one thing that bothered me …” Can you see that the two aren’t connected now? I hope so.
And sure I’m aware my opinion on the issue I discussed comes off biased, but if it is, it’s based on the candidates alone and not on some preconceived loyalty. I’m an independent looking out for my own interests and the candidate that I think can protect my interests.
I really favored Dean and wish he was in the election instead of Kerry, but I still couldn’t have voted for him because he was for pulling out of Iraq immediately.
I admire his consistency, but I can’t vote for someone that would propose that. That’s the problem with the world today. It’s easier to give up instead of finishing what you start. I wouldn’t like the message that would send to the rest of the world.
So at least I can rest easy knowing that Kerry promises to do that if he’s elected. It’s just on this one issue, I think he’s the weaker candidate.
Thanks, Shane. I have to clarify one point about Dean, though. I followed his campaign closely and he was definitely my first choice for the nomination. (Just look at my posts from April of last year to January of this year to see that.)
I think you may have Dean confused with Dennis Kucinich. Kucinich wanted to pull out immediately. Remember “UN in, US out”? Dean’s position was that the invasion of Iraq was wrong, but now that we are there we must finish the job.
I think Kerry won because his poll numbers have increased. There’s evidence that most pundits and voters thought he did the best job and more than likely earned more swing votes than Bush. If his numbers go up, and Bush’s don’t, I’d say that’s a clear victory.
Len, I’ll have to take your word for it on Dean. I never heard him say that himself, but I heard a reporter say that he said that to Chrissie Hynde of the Pretenders (I think that’s who it was).
Like most people, I just assumed if it was coming out of a journalists mouth that it must be true. My bad!
rock city … My criterion for being able to declare a clear winner is when a candidate is able to convert people from the other side. That didn’t happen in this debate.
As for the pundits … let me answer you with a riddle.
If you call a sheep’s tail a leg, how many legs will a sheep have?
Don’t look down like John Kerry would to get the answer in adavance so you won’t end up looking wrong … take your time and think about.
Choose your answer and stick with it! Don’t change it once you see the answer.
Ready?
Got your answer?
Did you say five? You’re wrong! A sheep has four legs. Even if you call a tail a leg, it’s still only a tail. Just because the pundits say something doesn’t make it true.
My advice, not if you care, think for yourself and be responsible for all that you think. That’s what makes a man (or woman). =p
Once you let others do you’re thinking for you, you just gave up the most precious gift God gave you.
You don’t have to take my word for it, Shane. One of the many statements Howard Dean made about Iraq can be read here .
And I agree with you completely about not allowing other people to make your decisions for you.
We’ll move on now…