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Now go vote. It’ll make you feel big and strong

The third and final presidential debate is over. I watched it carefully and am delighted to say that it had me on the edge of my seat and has actually changed a few things for me. It’s possible that my mind is simply in a different space after a trip to Canada and watching the season opener of Frontline which profiled both John McCain and Barack Obama. I love frontline, but I’m a pretty stubborn skeptic of politics, so who knows.

What I saw tonight was John McCain make some effort to get tough. The results were a man who appeared desperate, taking pot shots, and retreating at every opportunity to reinforce doubt, questions, and outright hypocrisy. I would have actually loved to know what someone like McCain would do for the current economic crisis, or any and all of the problems facing America today. But I didn’t hear anything new, or even vaguely interesting. I saw a man on the defense fail in his task of clarification, diplomacy, and to show me that he is different from the Bush administration, or has ideas of his own. I was more sympathetic to John McCain when he went up against W. in the debates of 2000. There I saw a man who approached the dialog with dignity, and class. He was visibly outraged by Bush’s shameless assaults, and frankly after showing us what a callous imbecile he really is I was astrounded that W. got the nomination. Not the first time I would be astonished or dumbfounded by George W. Bush.

On the other hand, I’ve written about my disappointment with Obama’s performance in these debates. I felt the same way watching Biden and Palin. My politics are clear, but what came clear to me tonight is that I haven’t got enough faith in the American public to believe for more than a moment that calm, diplomatic grace is enough to win a Presidential election. It’s sad, and I’m not proud of myself, but it’s true. In previous debates I felt that Obama standing his ground, calmly correcting McCain, and restating his position and plans were the same mistakes made by every losing candidate to go up against a Republican since the dawn of our two party system. These feelings have become somewhat intensified since Bush was re elected. I called for Obama to use his grown up voice and take a single and decisive swing at McCain.

Tonight as the final debate closed, I stand corrected. As the final words were spoken I felt elated in a new way, vindicated by a completely new side of Obama I have not yet sincerely paid attention to. I love his big voice, and have felt frustrated with his thoughtful, calm explanations of taxes, policy, and issues. But tonight I watched McCain’s petty and shameless attacks bounce off the clear and calm surface of Barack Obama and fall to the ground without impact.

This is an instance where I am absolutely delighted to be wrong. I feel I have grown, and learned something. If nothing else, I am grateful to come away from this debate feeling deeper, and somehow restored as a man in this world of spin, hype, and bullshit. Thank you.