ok so andrew sullivan is freaking out. so are a lot of people i know. i don't really get this. now the first thing is that the freakout is exactly proportional to how insanely, unbelievably, magniloquently important you think it is that obama be re-elected. aww by fucking up he has betrayed all that is good and pure, at this moment where we must choose america's direction! first of all, i feel that the urgency is absurdly disconnected from the actual stakes, and i doubt you'd really notice much difference between the obama and a romney administration. and second: for god's sake if you're a frigging 'pundit' can't you get some distance and view the point of your particular contribution not as helping someone win but as thinking about or analyzing what is actually happening? and third: oh for heaven's sake, i think the mo is liable to switch back and that obama has systemic electoral-college advantages etc. so chill the fuck out! plus it just wasn't as bad a performance as say sullivan or john stewart are saying. anyway, ditch catastrophic panic mode as unbefitting your, er, manliness and dignity.
why was obama "so bad"? it was his 20th wedding anniversary. he spent the hour before with michelle, who was pissy as hell and having hot flashes. by the time he came out, he was tired and disillusioned. the same thing happened when he met with netanyahu last year. that is my diagnosis!
