It's all about the pen
My candidate of choice
Since I moved home to Houston I have become a news junky. I am sure it is no surprise to any of you that I have a strong opinion about the political goings-on as of late. Fox News is my station of choice if that tells you anything about my political affiliation (shameless plug, I know). Being that it is an election year, I have been most fascinated with the political experts they have had on the network talking about the "rules" for the upcoming presidential debates. For all of you that have not had the opportunity to log the appropriate number of hours in front of the tube, I will catch you up to speed.
The RNC and the DNC have spent months outlining every aspect of the upcoming debates. They have been working tirelessly to eliminate any possibility of memorable moments when we get to see the true side of the men we are voting on to rule the country. They are doing this by trying to calculate every aspect of the environment. For example, the temperature will be kept at a low degree to avoid even the possibility of sweat on either candidate (apparently Kerry is extra susceptible to sweating fits - how sad). Also, to avoid Kerry towering over President Bush, the candidates must not approach one another at any point during the debate, other than the official opening handshake, of course. Few would argue that these requests are outrageous - no one wants to watch as Kerry creates a pool of sweat around himself or have to squint to see the candidates because it takes a wide angle to put Kerry and Bush in the same "headshot".
What seems ridiculous to me is the fact that the candidates can not address one another directly or pose a question to their opponent. How do you have a legitimate debate without engaging the other side? I guess we will find out, unless of course one of the candidates decides to violate the gentlemanly rules the parties have outlined. How civilly disobedient that would be! (Catch the sarcasm?)
There's more: Both the Republican and Democratic parties have agreed that no reaction shots will be allowed. What does that mean? The parties have agreed that the media will not be allowed to show one candidate reacting to what the other candidate is saying. Seem crazy? Well, it is - and what is the craziest thing about it? The fact that the parties actually think the media will go along with this! The media is not owned - strike that, supposed to be owned (Mr. Dan Rather) - by either party and will likely NOT participate in this aspect of the contract. Thank goodness for responsible journalism - who would watch the debates except to see how the men react to one another? Who can forget Gore waltzing up to Bush during his time on the floor - or him rolling his eyes as Bush outlined his proposal for his term. Only Gore believed that the media would not show him acting like a pompous jerk.
The way I see it, according to the rules of the RNC and DNC, the only way for the candidates to express any part of their personality is choose a pen that reflects it accurately. Word has it, it was actually a point of discussion as what type of pen and paper the candidates could bring with them on stage. Do you think we will see anything fun - like something with feathers on top (it worked for Elle in Legally Blond) or will the candidates stick to a nice Cross pen to match the blue suit and matching socks?
Since I moved home to Houston I have become a news junky. I am sure it is no surprise to any of you that I have a strong opinion about the political goings-on as of late. Fox News is my station of choice if that tells you anything about my political affiliation (shameless plug, I know). Being that it is an election year, I have been most fascinated with the political experts they have had on the network talking about the "rules" for the upcoming presidential debates. For all of you that have not had the opportunity to log the appropriate number of hours in front of the tube, I will catch you up to speed.
The RNC and the DNC have spent months outlining every aspect of the upcoming debates. They have been working tirelessly to eliminate any possibility of memorable moments when we get to see the true side of the men we are voting on to rule the country. They are doing this by trying to calculate every aspect of the environment. For example, the temperature will be kept at a low degree to avoid even the possibility of sweat on either candidate (apparently Kerry is extra susceptible to sweating fits - how sad). Also, to avoid Kerry towering over President Bush, the candidates must not approach one another at any point during the debate, other than the official opening handshake, of course. Few would argue that these requests are outrageous - no one wants to watch as Kerry creates a pool of sweat around himself or have to squint to see the candidates because it takes a wide angle to put Kerry and Bush in the same "headshot".
What seems ridiculous to me is the fact that the candidates can not address one another directly or pose a question to their opponent. How do you have a legitimate debate without engaging the other side? I guess we will find out, unless of course one of the candidates decides to violate the gentlemanly rules the parties have outlined. How civilly disobedient that would be! (Catch the sarcasm?)
There's more: Both the Republican and Democratic parties have agreed that no reaction shots will be allowed. What does that mean? The parties have agreed that the media will not be allowed to show one candidate reacting to what the other candidate is saying. Seem crazy? Well, it is - and what is the craziest thing about it? The fact that the parties actually think the media will go along with this! The media is not owned - strike that, supposed to be owned (Mr. Dan Rather) - by either party and will likely NOT participate in this aspect of the contract. Thank goodness for responsible journalism - who would watch the debates except to see how the men react to one another? Who can forget Gore waltzing up to Bush during his time on the floor - or him rolling his eyes as Bush outlined his proposal for his term. Only Gore believed that the media would not show him acting like a pompous jerk.
The way I see it, according to the rules of the RNC and DNC, the only way for the candidates to express any part of their personality is choose a pen that reflects it accurately. Word has it, it was actually a point of discussion as what type of pen and paper the candidates could bring with them on stage. Do you think we will see anything fun - like something with feathers on top (it worked for Elle in Legally Blond) or will the candidates stick to a nice Cross pen to match the blue suit and matching socks?
posted by Marilee at 8:50 PM
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