It's ironic that the oligarchy behind such non-entities as Bush select their candidates carefully for just the purposes outlined in the article. Unfortunately, most of the population in the US, the land where 70% of people believe they are above average (Harper's Index), are frightened by anyone who appears even half intellectual. With his stumblebum language and half-witted stubbornness he should appeal just fine to this majority. How sad for democracy.

Not a bad article, and I generally agree with the notion that americans are attracted to everyman stumblebums like dubya, much to the detriment of the common good. Nevertheless, I thought Kerry came off much better than bush, and if he can keep it up, he may just get the whitehouse. Let's not forget how biased polls can be, like the poll about harper forming a majority government we all heard so much about in canwest media. Also, mainstream american media is even more biased than ours.

On another note I find the continual defeatism of the left, ie. we can't win even though we're smarter and justice and the facts are on our side, so really what's the use of even trying. Contrast this with the mindless ideological boosterism and unfounded optimism of the right, and it's no wonder we often lose when we should win. The left needs to develop its own positivism and stop whining so much, as well as wean itself away from its continual orgies of negativism. They are killing us...

Its money Lewis, its easy for the right to keep smiling when all those corporate dollars keep rolling in whether they win or lose a debate or an election. A little harder to stay focused when you're trying desperately to pay the rent on your campaign office.

I agree that the right has a lot of advantages in our economic system, Frank. However, the ndp HAS raised a lot of money for attack ads and I sure hope we're going to start seeing them, before the totally misleading economic statistics the bc liars are trying to ram down people's throats with their endless taxpayer funded ads gain too much currency. There shouild be a letter writing and "sound-off" posting campaign against these pathetic lies. What the bc liars keep doing is saying things like bc's economy is growing fastest (AS A PERCENTAGE) which only means the lower the rate of economic growth the more a slight increase shows up as a high percentage. In terms of real economic growth bc is still second last. If the ndp waits until 6 weeks before the election to try and get this easily verifiable truth out it could well cost it the next election. And I still say, frank, that the left over all has a defeatist attitue, although there are exceptions.

Perhaps writers like Mr. Burgess would rather induce chicken little style "worry", rather than brains and not indictable lying bumpkins presiding at the end of the day. Or quoting decided voter polls - or "betting" like a dolt that "polls" amongst a hundred truly speak the multitude who think otherwise.

Anyone watch SNL last night? The opening was hilarious, a spoof of Kerry Vs. Bush.

Damn, I missed that, was going to watch and then got busy.

I saw it and it was indeed hilarious. Interesting to note that tina fey gave jimmie fallon the boot. The show in the last three years under tina fey's writing skills has been as good as the early years, after a long period of decline....

Thanks Mr B. One noteworthy addition to the Lincoln debates - they were several HOURS long. And the audience had to actually sit in those hard straight backed wooden chairs without benefit of Cheetos, Doritos, Pork Rinds OR a channel changer. Damn. They *were* made of sterner stuff back then. And ... as Thomas Frank sez... Bang the *moral* drum in America and they'll generally sign up for anything you wanna do. If you're slick enough, you can bang the drum AND drain their bank accounts at the same time. Works like a charm. PS: Kit darlin - apparently you haven't used that Ex-Lax yet huh? Loosen up baby! Maybe drop by The Roxy! mmmmmwah!

The stupidity required of US presidential candidates has reached such a level, that even one of the most intelligent of them (Clinton, Rhodes scholar and all) has to play the bumpkin to win. I think his aw shucks bubba act was not just simple populism or playing to the gallery, it was absolutely necessary for him to win. Kerry can't pull it off. Whether that says good things or bad things about him as a person it is probably going to cost him the election. The British, when their Empire was at its greatest, and at the same time begining to crumble had a phrase;- he's too clever by half! The Americans have been electing Presidents based on this idea for many years now. The Democrats try to fool them by running people who just pretend to be yokels. They are often caught out. The Republicans take the simpler, and in some ways more honest path, of just running real yokels. To paraphrase, "He may be a fool but he's our fool." And no-one can prove he's not a fool"

I had deliberately avoided watching the debate (the first 2 rounds it was aired) - mostly due to what Lewis has stated as a defeatist attitude. It had been a long day and the last thing I wanted was to watch what I thought was evalangical rants from Bush drowning the less inspiring rational stream spuing from Kerry's stoic demeanor. However, my spirits were greatly lifted (as they are wont to do) after watching Jon Stewarts' take on the debate on his Daily Show that night. I could definitely relate to one of the skits in which a reporter wanted to know how anyone could be undecided - it was absolutely hilarious in its striking the nail on the head. As neighbourly the folks south of the 49th parallel may be, astute is an adjective that fails to describe them. Can you imagine the mayhem if there were 4 choices that actually had some overlapping ideologies on some perspectives - like we had in our federal elections? How different can you get between democrat and republican; and how can anyone be undecided??? Good grief, no wonder they are having such a hard time forcing democracy on other nations - they can hardly handle their own choice of dictator on the home front. Even supersizing is a choice that needs further speculation nowadays....