McCain pledged to end "partisan rancor."

I'll believe it when he rescinds his VP offer to Governor Palin.

Every thing about the Republicans is "old, old school". From their music to McCain to Palin's hairdo. It's like they are afraid of "change" or refuse to admit that the world is "moving".

McCain's speech was terrible!! No policy, just "war stories and rethoric". I am so sick of hearing about his POW story. Is he the only POW left from Viet Nam? Was he the only one captured? You would think so. Why don't we just bronze him and stick him in a museum with a video. Can we move on, please?

Is this what we are going to hear at every "state of the union address" from him? Is this what every visiting world leader is going to have to listen to when they visit the white house?

McCain is hopelessly "yester year"!!

I agree. Mrs. Palin only fans the flames of partisan rancor.

Ok, yeah, so I'm an old guy. I was in college when Reagan was elected, and he spoke at our college. They had a pop cover band playing before Reagan came out, all dressed up in red white and blue spangled outfits. The very last song they played before Reagan stepped up to the mic was "Act Naturally" by the Beatles. Yeah, that one, with the chorus

Well I hope you come and see me in the movies

Then I’ll know that you will plainly see

The biggest fool that ever hit the big time

And all I gotta do is act naturally

I'm LMAO, but nobody is paying any attention to the song - "Don't you get it? The band is getting in a little subversive dig!" but I couldn't get anyone to pay attention.

True story.

...to vote for Obama.

My father isn't exactly right wing, but he's definitely what you'd call a "low information" voter. He tends to believe the wacked out emails he gets from his Republican pals, and generally shows up on election day with exactly ZERO information about the candidiates and their positions. He rarely if ever watches the conventions or the debates, and seems to make his political decisions based on god-knows-what. Probably voodoo. One year he voted for Nader because he's "a quality control guy." The next year he voted for Bush. Go figure.

This year, despite the fact that he's getting quite deaf, he watched both Obama's and McCain's convention speeches with the TV volume turned up to 11. After Obama's speech, he gruffly told me "I like that guy. I think he's going to win." Tonight, after watching McCain's speech, he came and told me in no uncertain terms that he was intending to vote for Obama. He said McCain's speech was "canned" and "crap" and he thinks Palin is a joke. This year, he said, he's going to pay attention.

My mother is quite a bit more politically savvy, and does pay attention, but every election year, she puts up a comically transparant facade about the secrecy of her vote. You will never catch her endorsing any candidate outright, and she has a pathological hatred of yard signs. But during the Dem convention, I caught her during Hillary Clinton's speech, yelling at the TV, saying "talk more about Barack!" When she heard about Palin, she simply rolled her eyes and wondered what the hell the Republicans were thinking. "She's no Hillary Clinton" said my dear mother. She too watched McCain's speech tonight. Her only comment, was "ghastly." As usual, It's pretty obvious who she's voting for, especially after I heard her during Palin's speech mumbling "please God, don't let these people get in", but bless her, my mom is still attempting to maintain her aura of political mystery.

We all live in California, which isn't exactly a swing state. But my mom is originally from Iowa and my dad is from Colorado, and if the good people of those states are thinking like my parents are right now, McCain is headed for epic fail. I'm keeping my fingers crossed. And all my toes.

Act Naturally was originally by Buck Owens, but point well taken.

Hilarious!

It's been a visceral thing with my conservative brothers and their wives. They were going to go McCain until he chose Sarah as his running mate then they all went ballistic and said no way. (Actually, one of my brothers asked my mom if McCain had lost his f***ing mind.) Swift and certain.

One sister-in-law told me that McCain had overlooked more qualified women who had worked hard for the party for years and she found his decision "stupid and unforgivable". The other one told me that "no way in hell am I going to have my daughter looking up to a woman with a pregnant teenager".

Your story is much funnier, but I wanted to let you know that my personal experience tells me you're on to something.

What is that, like the hundredth group that McCain has stolen music from?

Loved your story as well! It's amazing how things seem really turned around this year, in the most unexpected places. I'm dying to talk to my brother, who is a Republican, but was recently considering changing sides. This, from a guy who once had a picture of Shrub Jr. posted on a cork board in his home office.

The last I heard, he was planning to sit out the election because he hates McCain and thinks Obama is too inexperienced. I wonder if he's revised his opinion now that Biden is on the Obama ticket and McCain has selected Caribou Barbie as his running mate, what with her amazing experience and contempt for community organizing.

Also, word on the street from my Iowa relatives is that Obama is their new favorite son. According to my aunt, who, incedentally has a beehive that would put Sarah Palin to shame, "everyone in town loves Obama." Mind you, this town has less than 2,000 people, yet still manages to sport a city hall that looks like something other than an abandoned liquor store. If my kooky old aunt is to be believed, Greenfield, IA is ALL IN for Obama.