"the cosmetic is the new cosmic."
--rem koolhaas
the candidates shook and blocked the teleprompter and posed and didn't shake. and on soundstages across the land, talking heads and focus-group participants of all backgrounds and political inclinations seemed finally unified in the manner that both campaigns have promised since their inceptions, and cried aloud in a single, resounding voice, "meh." in soundbite upon soundbite, the complaint was repeated: no details, no specifics, no substance.
it's a fair point; i learned more about obama's proposed policies from the new yorker endorsement than a year's worth of speeches, interviews, and college auditorium royal rumbles combined. (the ham-handedness of mccain's plans often renders specifics deeply unhelpful; how much elaboration does "spending freeze" really require? it is a broken contract, the government's willful failure of its citizens, no matter how long you talk about it.)
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