Despair

Rod Dreher, for once, nails it:

I cannot believe that this country is in the critical condition that it's in, and these are the politicians we're asked to choose from as our next leader. Neither McCain nor Obama spoke with any credibility or seriousness about our situation. When asked what sacrifices they would ask the American people to make in light of the crisis and its likely fallout, they punted. It made me so angry! I have no use for either of those pandering mannequins.

McCain is the conservative in the race, though, and he gave no reason at all to give conservative ideas a hearing . . . . Obama won this dull, worthless "debate," for what that's worth, and he's going to win the election. Nothing McCain did tonight changed a thing. He's done. This race is now the 2008 version of Clinton vs. Dole. And you know how well that turned out for the Republicans.

The silver lining: Obama and the Democrats are going to own this godawful mess. And the conservative movement can clear the deadwood out of the way, and start to rebuild itself into a credible force.

I would add that my prediction about Sarah Palin turned out to be correct: her nomination ultimately meant nothing of substance. She is a compelling biography and a competent governor; she is not, however, in possession of a single worthwhile thought on any national issue outside of energy.

But the coming electoral calamity is properly owned by McCain, and that segment of the Republican party that attempted to foist him upon the electorate. It was his responsibility to be about something; instead, he offered us everything we didn't like about the Bush administration, and nothing we did. He will lose; he will have deserved to lose; and the fact that the Democrats also deserve to lose is at this point essentially irrelevant.

Democracy lets people choose their government, and we deserve to get it good and hard.