6 Days to the Election

We are in the final run to election day and no one can say who might win. According to all the polls (Gallup, Pugh, NBC, CBS, ABC, CNN, etc.), it's a dead heat between the two presidential candidates.

I like the poll with Hallowe'en costume shops. On October 24th, Spirit Halloween stores stated that, according to their records, the candidate who sold the most masks before Halloween in an election year won the election.

In 1996, Clinton outsold Dole 71% to 29%, and as we all know, Clinton won. In 2000, Bush 2 beat Gore 57% to 43% and, in his re-election bid in 2004, Bush 2 once again outsold his opponent, Kerry, 65% to 35%.

In 2008, McCain's mask didn't do too hot. His mask accounted for 40%, leaving Obama to sweep it up with 60% of the sales. And, if mask sales are any indicator, Obama will take it away again in 2012. As of October 24th, it was Obama 65% and Romney 35%.

Now, THAAAT'S my kind of poll research!

14 Days to the Presidential Election

I am such a slouch here on my blog. Oh, yes. I have the best intentions. Intending to write once a week. Then, when too many weeks go by, I tell myself I'll write once a month.

Yeah. Right.

So, with 14 days until Election Day, I'm going to try a little exercise. I am going to attempt to write a comment each day until the day AFTER election day.

Today's comment has to do with last night's Presidential Debate. It was held here in Florida and I managed to stay awake for the first 45 minutes, napping, and awaking in time to catch the last 20 minutes.

I slept through the first debate, just like President Obama said he did. (You're supposed to smile at this.)  The second debate, I watched intently, thanks to a late cup of coffee. Yes, folks! Caffeine works! And, it was something akin to a good football game. You had to keep your eyes on the players!

This third debate was different. First of all, it was moderated by my favorite Sunday morning political talk show host, Bob Schieffer. The man has more journalistic integrity in his little finger than any other reporter I know. (Except maybe, Scott Pelley.) Second, the President and the Governor were seated; not wandering all over the stage. I found the Town Hall Forum a little disconcerting because of that. It was like watching two bullies in a school yard playing "King on the Mountain." And, finally, our two debaters were now seasoned. They'd done this. They knew it was an even playing field.

Except for one thing. Obama knows from his experiences as President what's REALLY going on with foreign relations. He's been in the "situation room." He's ordered bombings and shootings. He knows how it feels. He knows how it goes down. And, personally, I'd much rather have a leader who's done it before. There's something to be said for experience.

The thing that I found most exasperating was when Romney wouldn't answer the question. Any high school debater can tell you that FIRST you answer the question, THEN you provide support for your answer. He didn't do that. A lot. So, Romney got demerits on my debate scorecard. Charm will only get you so far in a debate. I thought President Obama did well in answering in a way that regular folks (like me) can understand. He didn't "dumb it down" as some have accused him of doing. He took some tips from Bill Clinton and made his answers understandable.

Some say it was a draw. I say Obama won. But, not by a landslide. So, now ... here we are ... 14 days before the election and we have to prepare to make our choice. Too bad we can't have them both. Obama for his community activism spirit; and, Romney for his business acumen. I believe our economy would recover by Valentine's Day if that were the White House team!