The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

Checking out blog comments can be dispiriting. To judge from some comments I've read recently, Obama is a "weak candidate," Hillary should drop out of the race, and McCain is not conservative enough. Politics is full of rough-and-tumble speech, and we live in a pretty caustic, cynical society, so in some ways it's no surprise that people are so negative about all three candidates. Still, the anonymity of the Internet makes people more likely to attack without thinking first, or to put emotional tags onto reasonable arguments. "Flame wars" are very common on many popular blogs, and people get attacked personally all the time. It's free speech, but it's also offensive to my sensibilities. I want people to get along more than they do, and I want people to let themselves be inspired or moved by a speech without second-guessing and playing political pundit. Maybe it's naivete, maybe it's optimism, but I see the potential for positive developments in the country in the next 4 years, no matter who is President.