Absorbed

As you can perhaps tell from my rather brief post yesterday (both its content and its length) I was rather absorbed in the Democratic National Convention yesterday. In fact, I've been absorbed all week. I thought, rather than blogging on about it every day, however, that I would try to let my thoughts coalesce after it was all over.
So, here goes:
- Michelle Obama had a hard task. She had to start the humanization process for her husband, who has been unfairly painted by McCain as an elitist. (That this comes from the son and grandson of admirals, who appears to have been given a prestigious flying career solely because of who his father and grandfather were, who married into millions, and has untold houses, is indeed rich). Her task was made harder, I think, for two reasons, both of which were that she followed Teddy Kennedy: he took all the emotion that evening, and also, his biographical video was full of elitist shots of him and his family on their sailboat. Despite this, I thought that Michelle Obama did a great job --- and their daughters are priceless and precious!
- Hillary Clinton's speech was first rate. She had to give Obama full throated support, and to tell her supporters why, if they support her, they have to vote for him. I think that she did this -- and assuming (as I expect she will) that she continues to stump for him like this, she'll be a tremendous asset to the campaign.
- Mark Warner. He sold cell phones. By me, he should go back to selling cell phones. He certainly didn't sell himself to me. Apparently he's great: but I didn't see it.
- Bill Clinton: the big dog is back. His speech was superb --- it perhaps overshadowed even Hillary's speech, and reminded those of us who didn't hate him why we miss him still. And the comparison between him and his successor in the White House is incredible (and it's not just veniality versus venality). I saw a sticker this morning that said "A candidate for president should have a three digit IQ" and thought back to last night.
- Joe Biden: I'm not yet sold on his merits: I thought his son did him a great service with the introduction: his wife does him great credit, and he has a wonderful, painful, biographical story. But just as with McCain, biography doesn't give an automatic ticket to the White House. I'm not sure on a few of his policies, though some folks whose opinions I regard seriously like him a lot. (Biden, I mean, not McCain!) We'll see.
- Al Gore. Winner, but for the courts, of the 2000 election, reminded us what we missed out on. I thought that this was the best speech I've ever seen him give: full of fire, vim and vigour: if he had managed to stump like that eight years ago, I don't think that Bush would have been close enough to shoehorn his way in.
- Obama: he clearly has the same sort of talent for speaking to people the way that Bill Clinton does: he doesn't seem to be reading a speech, but rather to be really feeling and living the words, not just saying them. But what I can't see is the perspective of the opponent here: just as I still can't understand, don't get, the republican view that Clinton was evil incarnate, I can't see Obama through the eyes of someone who considers McCain seriously and finds him presidential.
And that makes it hard for me to see whether Obama's speech is great, or merely very very good but preaching to the converted.

I may try to watch some of the convention next week --- and I might post my thoughts on their speakers too. But then again, I might not. As my mother always said, if you can't say something nice about someone....

Yours, nicely,
N.