No, that's not a prediction as to any outcomes -- it's just an existential decision on the part of the Montana Headlines editorial staff. It's not that we don't have any opinions about the ongoing campaigns and the various tussles and tangles of this election. It's just that it is just getting to be a gawd-awful bore. All of it. So it has been harder and harder to get worked up about this or that issue, controversy, or race. Certainly, it's been getting ever harder to write about it.
Since Montana Headlines is a virtual reality to begin with, we thought -- why not just declare that the election is over, at least as far as Montana Headlines is concerned? According to the self-imposed rules of this virtual political universe -- anything is possible. Suddenly, the world seems more interesting again. Free at last, as they say.
What has this election cost us? Well, no commentary on the Billings Symphony opener and the brilliance of Valentina Lisitsa's Rachmaninoff. No discussion of the disturbing cultural implications for Billings of having Ed Kemmick's band break up (OK -- we'll tell that part: It was the usual, per the word on the street -- nice kids they wanted to have more time to visit, wanting to enjoy good microbrews with friends rather than practice guitar, happy marriages that made them want to stay home -- the same sad story that afflicts every folk/blues band made up of straight-shooting, middle-aged guys with ordinary day jobs.)
No discourse on The New Criterion's issue on higher education that we picked up while traveling (the May issue -- that's how much this politics stuff gets in the way of life) -- let alone their annual poetry issue. No reflections on re-reading Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice for the first time since college, or on Montana Shakespeare in the Park's summer offerings. Or how about that gratifying New Yorker article on Sibelius -- how long ago was that?
And what of the opening of hunting season, the smell of fall in the air, and the smell of the fall of the Oakland Raiders? It's hard to be missing all of that -- and then the realization hits: one doesn't have to write about politics, just because the election is around the corner and the expectation is that a political blog has to be in the thick of the flying mud.
Wake us up when that November 4 thing is over and tell us who won what. We'll decide if we want to comment on it.
10 comments:
I understand why you feel like this but I have appreciated the reasonable commentary that you have added to the discussion. Oh, and I am sorry to hear about the "Dogs."
Throwing in the towel on your party before the final bell is understandable. You're best off pretending the knockout won't affect you if you cover your eyes and don't talk about it.
Thanks for the kind words.
When politics isn't being screamed about all the time, it is fun to offer commentary and draw attention to things that otherwise aren't getting noticed.
But right now, when all the packs of dogs are in full bay -- it will be more interesting to talk about something else.
And yes, it is sad about the "Dogs." Maybe they'll get together for a reunion tour when they figure out all of the big money that's out there for nostalgia acts -- think the Eagles, Pink Floyd...
Well, and let's face it. It is more fun when our side is ahead.........
It helps if you read at least the first sentence of a post before commenting, anon2.
And as to the last comment, it isn't so much who's winning or losing that makes commenting enjoyable. It is the level of the dialogue -- which right now seems to be pretty much nonstop screaming talking heads.
Even when one's 'side' is winning, that gets old really fast.
I hear you. I'm not even sure I have a side and yet I've never been more pleased to be a non-blogger. One hopeful sign, though, is that McCain apparently wasn't much enjoying the Sean Hannity tactics, and he has gone back to assuring people in his own party that Obama is not the devil incarnate. It was nice to have a tiny respite from the bitter fighting.
I don't think the election is over, but I think that McCain has to come up with something on the economy. I like McCain, but I want to hear him articulate a plan that I can wrap my arms around.
I was taking this survey the other day . .
http://www.friendsoftheuschamber.com/takeaction/index.cfm?ID=33
-- and, it made me realize that I am really worried about the economic future of the country.
Frankly, I think that Hannity and his ilk have done more to damage Senator Mc Cain's campaign than anything else that has happened. It would be nice if you could believe that when the election is over, everything will be okay again but that isn't likely either.
Well, at least the earth will continue to revolve around the sun and life will likely go on!
Again, MH declaring the election over doesn't mean that we have declared a winner. 3 weeks is a long time in Presidential politics, and the Obama camp had better not be measuring for curtains in the White House quite yet.
But you're right. If McCain manages to lose this election, it will be because he has failed to articulate a coherent and believable economic plan that connects with the electorate. The rest is just background noise.
Speaking of background noise, it is correct that the shrillness of Hannity has hurt rather than helped McCain. Guys like him had a problem -- they had demonized McCain in the primaries, promoting the ridiculous idea that Mitt Romney (who made Human Events' Top Ten RINO list as recently as 2005) was some sort of a conservative savior.
So the only way that they could support McCain while having some sort of integrity was by making Obama into a super-duper-demon.
McCain will take the fall, but the reality is that he was the only Republican in the field with a chance to defeat a Democrat this year.
Your last comment MH shows you are a hypocrite. First you're tired of all the punditry of this election then to explain the reasons why, you sound like some left-winged pundit. I noticed you fail to realize that the media at large has largely ignored all the stuff on Obama. Not because it's not important, but because it gets in the way of their crowning of Obama.
As a lifelong Reagan Conservative, I will tell you that neither one is qualified. The entire field was absolutely worthless.
Hannity is the least of McCain's problems. Obama has yet to "close the deal" as well as McCain. That's why this race is so close. If you want Socialism and Marxism, Obama is your guy. If you prefer not to go that direction, McCain is the guy to take this country forward.
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