...when he allowed himself to get impassioned. In that moment I thought: that's what Gore blew and what Kerry was too spineless to do. That, right there, is what that thing I wanted to see look like.

Obama and he are playing this quite well, genuine, strategy, or a mixture thereof. Their tone is civil, but firm, and moderately angry only when it's called for. Biden on the last more than Obama. They're mostly running their campaign on the issues and McCain is running on...attacking them, and that he's been around a while, and yet isn't Washington. They're allowing him to destroy himself. I saw earlier a new McCain ad where he tries to strike a positive, non-partisan tone, but after all he's been doing it comes across as the lamest boyfriend apology ever. "I know I lied to and hit you, honey, and I wasn't there when you were sick. But now is not the time to bicker, there are more important things to worry about." It's too late, and the more shit he slings, the more falls back in his face. He's wasting his time attacking them and we don't have patience for it right now. He's so misread this year.

You're a real jerk. This wasn't Edwards. Biden lost his damn wife, forever. There's no need for that, and Palin's exploitation of her family overwhelms any of that. I mean, she kind of started this campaign by throwing her daughter under a bus. And oh, what a happy household that'll be when she loses.

That she might play her as a robot short-circuiting.

I've been trying for years to get more attention paid to this film--PARTICULARLY after Abu Ghraib. It's a huge influence on my own work, and the strongest thing Pasolini ever made, and that's saying a lot. I think it also takes on new levels of comment about consumerist capitalism(one of Pasolini's main targets--imagine if the victims came out of an Abercrombie & Fitch catalogue and you get an idea what he was getting at, but the book PASOLINI: REQUIEM has much more info on that) post-reality-TV. Actually, they sort of made it into one unknowingly: Fear Factor.

And the new Criterion release is absolutely beautiful, just as an object, and I've never seen the picture look so sharp and subtle, strange to say. Previous prints I've seen had a rather exploitation patina to them--too much red, muddy dark tones, etc. Watching it now I can really see what a lovely job Ferretti did.

If anyone's interested, this was my take on it years ago:

http://www.helium.com/items/460794-movie-reviews-salo

I disagree with one thing Andrew says. I think this should be seen by any American adult nowadays. If you've tolerated what your government's been up to, then you need to watch this and see if you still can live with it. Never has there been a better image of all that is evil, and never a more clear and direct idea expressed of what authoritarianism truly is. It has something to say from the big stuff like fascism down to the smallest, pettiest awful job. All I can say is that re: the scene where their favorite victim is forced to eat--well, Andrew told you--all of us who've had a boss have some idea, metaphorically, what that moment feels like.

And when the hell will they release CANTERBURY TALES or ARABIAN NIGHTS, also(in a very different, much more pleasant way) brilliant films?

A bit of context, by the way: those films, with THE DECAMERON called "The Trilogy of Life," caused SALO. It was partly Pasolini's contrary reaction to the love people had for those very much life-affirming, lighthearted, bawdy works. One element of SALO was his statement against sex reduced to a consumer product, which he felt had been what made those films successful. It bothered him that the honest, working-class, natural sexuality expressed in those films became just another thing to sell. So SALO is saying, "Okay, fuckers, sell this."

"And to think there was a time I actually thought you were cool."

--HEATHERS

But in fact he did shake Obama's hand immediately after the debate. The moment you may be thinking of, and Andrew Sullivan got it wrong too and corrected it, was when Obama shook Cindy McCain's hand after John seemed to have refused it.

This doesn't matter, however. The impression of contempt for Obama throughout the rest of the debate was inescapable, and ugly.

Regarding "That one," well, I grew up in the South, specifically genteel Charleston. Once it became unfashionable there to overtly say slurs, older people started saying things like, "Those dark-complected types," or, you guess it, various conjugations of "That one." To McCain's base, the meaning was clear. To me as well. And it was slimy, and evil.

By the way, if you go back and look at that moment, notice the evil, villanous look McCain has as he says it. It's kind of disturbing. He really resents Obama and it makes me fear what his sudden drop to 30% will make him do next. Palin's already started stirring people to say "Kill him!" A rat in a corner will jump at your face.