Centerfield

what'ssad is that despitethathe'sSTILL better than the other two candidates on the Dem side.To me, O and Hill are more demagogues than W, trying to sucker people on something they can't control. Look what happened with Ms. Power

Rachel's right that on Iraq the 3 folks left have somewhat differing visions. Most of us can probably agree that on the hawk scale, it goes McCain, Clinton, Obama.

And of course you can debate these differences on the merits, how forcefully we should maintain our presence, what we're getting in return, what that's worth, what the price is, and so forth and so on. But mileage varies so widely there, and it's not really the topic of this thread.

McCain's gaffe is a small one as things go. Cheerfully granted. But it does worry me. His staff tried to pass it off as a detail that McCain was well aware of and that he just misspoke. That MAY be so, but it has me worried that he's not very interested in comparatively fine but nevertheless crucial distinctions.

But even that is not what worries me most. Before I go on, let me reiterate that I have liked McCain for a long time and wrote him in in the 2000 and 2004 elections. Why? Because my state is so blue I figured I might as well vote for someone I admired. It wouldn't matter whether I picked from the blue douche or red turd, blue douche had it in the bag.

As a long-time fan and watcher, what worries me most about McCain, and has for over a year, is his obviously diminished vitality....and yes acuity. Let me be clear, it's not that I'm saying he's too old. Age is just a number, and fitness varies quite a bit from person to person. It looks great for McCain that his mother still looks sharp and vital for her age. But I can't look at McCain without being painfully aware of how much less he has in the tank compared to 8 or even 4 years ago. He used to have a real fire in his belly and a bounce in his step. It seems mostly gone to me now.

That makes this gaffe another bad sign for me. Either he really didn't know, which makes him sadly incurious, or he knows but doesn't care enough to keep it in the forefront of his mind. Or worst, maybe he can't retain such important details.

Again. I love the guy. He's a great American, IMO. And he may even still have enough of the right stuff to be the best choice from the 3 folks left. I'm not trying to turn this into "you must vote for the democrat." I'm just saying that if you've been watching things with your eyes open the past few years, you really MUST take into account McCain's diminishment over the last few years. Unless of course you really haven't seen this. And I suppose that's possible. But it's been painfully obvious to me.

In other instances among friends, including a stalwart Republican, where I've brought this up, a common response I get is "I wasn't going to say anything, but I've thought it. I'm not sure he can still handle it either."

Worst. Election. Ever.

Kritter said something that I realize I forgot in my post - like him, I think McCain has contributed greatly to this country, nor do I think his day is quite done, even if I think he's likely going to lose this election.