For the wrath of man…

I’m hard put to it not to sputter in outrage over the proceedings. Me getting mad over it won’t solve anything, and will probably just be bad for Baby (a consideration that’s still rather foggy at this point), but it’s terribly provoking to see how these debates are spun.

A contributing factor is my sense of helplessness, because most of my information now comes second-hand. Whereas before I would have been in the thick of things, reading Drudge avidly and hanging on to every word of the debate, I’m rather trailing behind to catch up. So I think I’m justified in feeling this upset. But don’t quote me on any of this.

During last night’s debate I fell asleep after the first round of questions (at which I agreed that Cheney looked suitably unflappable and respectable and Edwards looked inappropriately slick [Did you catch his constant sideways glances at the TV cameras and patent-leather grins? How maddening! Could anyone really be fooled by that Miss America-quality smile?]) as my bedtime these days is usually 7:30 or thereabouts. So I didn’t actually see or hear Cheney’s remark about Edwards’ poor attendance record in the senate. But Michael was much impressed with it, and it sure sounded like a slam-dunk sound-bite to me.

Then this morning I read an article that pitched the contest as a dead tie, with both candidates getting in zingers at each other and both being guilty of misinformation and inaccuracies. It even referred to Cheney’s brilliant remark, and stated how he addressed this remark to the Senator himself, in direct violation of the debate rules to which both candidates had agreed! Excuse me? What of Kerry’s pulling something out of his pocket before his debate last week, something that looked suspiciously like a crib sheet, in direct violation of the debate rules to which both candidates had agreed?

Correct me if any of this is wrong. I didn’t actually see a clear video. I did see a picture sequence of Kerry with his hand very much in his coat pocket. But where is the outrage? Where are the accusations? Why isn’t anyone in the Republican Party shouting it from the housetops that while President Bush spent all day before the debate helping hurricane victims, Kerry spent it in the salon getting primped for the show?