You're confused. You're a progressive, a liberal, a kossack. But the debate had you cringing more than you'd like to admit.
Why won't Barack take it to McSame? Call him out on his lies? Stop saying I agree?
Sure, there were moments when you could take pride in Barack's forcefulness, and moments when you could be sure that McCain was over the top even for Mr and Mrs Palooka.
Still ... it made you uncomfortable. And now you're surprised to find that Barack owned the focus groups ... that the debate turns out to have been an EPIC FAIL for McCain with independents.
What is going on? I'll explain on the flip.
Think about it.
You've been following the campaign closely. But have you been able to listen to McCain at any length without changing the channel?
You're fully aware of all of McCain's mistakes and mendacity. But have you thought at all recently about the right calls he did make at times in the past, like warning Reagan to get out of Lebanon?
The answer to both questions is likely, "no."
And yet just now you had to sit through 45 minutes of a world-class charmer (sad, and weird, but true) working on you, you who have been avoiding exacty him, fighting against exactly him, for months and years.
It's hard!
If you think about it, you can recognize the phenomenon in one of the great literary characterizations of the twentieth century:
"Another voice spoke, low and melodious, its very sound an enchantment. Those who listened unwarily to that voice could seldom report the words that they heard; and if they did, they wondered, for little power remained in them. Mostly they remembered only that it was a delight to hear the voice speaking, and all that it said seemed wise and reasonable, and desire awoke in them by swift agreement to seem wise themselves."
Maybe you don't feel that way when you hear McCain's voice, but a third of Americans do, and another third feel its pull, and our third at least understands that the voice has power.
How to dispel the spell? Here is how Gandalf does it: "Saruman, you missed your path in life. You should have been the king's jester and earned your bread, and stripes, too, by mimicking his counselors. Ah me! Understand each other? I fear I am beyond your comprehension. But you, Saruman, I understand now too well."