Kerry

Wow. I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of John Kerry's speech today. Granted, I didn't see Clinton or Obama, so I don't really know what the high bar was for this convention, but as an acceptance speech for a candidate for high office in a very serious time, I think he did quite well. Where he usually stiff and inaccessible and long-winded, he was brief, rolling, and hammered his key points. Where the republican acceptance speech will be dominated by testosterone, false piety and fear, Kerry was strong, unrelenting, and hopeful. Perhaps his best line was, "There's nothing more pessimistic than saying American can't do better." I liked the bit about faith. The two things that annoy me about the contemporary Republican party are the two things they've attempted to steal outright from all Americans: God and the flag. The whole convention was liberally peppered with people who don't see things so clearly, military men who resent anyone claiming the flag for themselves, people of faith who are also Democrats. The DNC did a good job of really representing the party for what it is: a big, optimistic tent. All around a good speech, and I'm interested to hear all of your diverse opinions on the matter. Oh, and Beautiful Day at the end his speech? Perfect. God I wish I was in Boston...