Expect full coverage of the Republican National Convention on this blog next week; in the meantime if you're in a reading mood, the blog Ludicrosity (http://ludicrosity.com/) is having an interesting debate over religion. The initial post defending atheism is here, followed by a pluralistic rebuttal by Mike Donimiak, and then most recently a Christian rebuttal by reporter Dan Heaton (the first article you'll see on the ludicrosity.com main page.)

Thanks everyone for their continued emails and support! As tension heats up in the coming months before the election, I expect we'll stay busy!

One of the only shows on television that I have never missed an episode of is Comedy Central's "The Daily Show" with Jon Stewart. And when I say I've "never missed an episode," I mean it literally -- my ReplayTV (like a Tivo, but better) automatically records it for me every time it's on, and I don't allow it to ever delete episodes I haven't watched all the way through. If you're not a fan of the show, you're missing out -- it regularly contains some of the best political humor and satire available anywhere, and makes me laugh out loud more than any sitcom in recent memory.

If there's a downside to The Daily Show, its in the increasingly one-sided anti-Bush, pro-Kerry slant of its "coverage". (The only way they poke fun of Kerry, ever, is in his stilted speaking style.) Now, I'm not complaining from a political standpoint (although since more young people get their news from Jon Stewart than any other source, he does have the power to sway a close election). But from a comedy standpoint, it seems silly to only lambast of one side of the aisle. Why eliminate half of the fun you could have? After all, Bill Maher's equally brilliant HBO show is more viciously anti-Bush but still finds humor in Democrat follies, too -- because both can be hysterical.

Anyway.

John Kerry was on The Daily Show on Tuesday, which the national news reported on ad nauseum. I didn't get a chance to watch the episode itself until a day later, and by then had read so much about his appearance that I was firmly expecting to jump online and write a positive article about it for this site. I had it all worked out in my head, about how nice and engaging and charming and funny Kerry could be in the right environment, and how I finally understood how some people might be won over, even if I disagreed with his policies.

But, upon watching the interview (twice), I was stunned at how unlikable Kerry was. Even Jon Stewart was thrown by it, and was unable to carry on anything resembling a coherent conversation. In fact, the New York Post wrote a scathing review of the episode, criticizing Stewart for being "unable to form complete sentences" and acting "like a deer caught in the high beams." I'm not sure that's entirely fair, for it seemed to me more akin to a bad first date, where there just isn't the "click" needed for back-and-forth banter. The discussion felt stilted and unnatural, the rhythms of communication always just out of reach. If anything, it seemed Stewart was desperately trying to get Kerry to break out of his shell, and it didn't happen. The only time Kerry sounded remotely comfortable is when he resorted to quoting his own stump speeches.

Does it matter? Well, it's certainly an odd curiosity. This is the first interview Kerry's given since the whole Swift Vets controversy, and you'd think he'd use the opportunity to clear up some issues and forcefully defend his side. But he didn't. How could he have squandered this opportunity? It's difficult to imagine a more perfect environment to mount a defense, on a liberal program with a pro-Kerry host in front of an ultra pro-Kerry crowd who would have cheered and ovated him for minutes. If he can't connect with a crowd who already loves him, what hope will he ever have of connecting with the undecideds or conservatives he needs to win? (And people wonder why Kerry was the first presidential candidate in 30 years not to get a post-convention poll bounce.)

I realized, spellbound by Kerry's awkwardness, how important the upcoming debates really are. In 2000, Gore was expected to make mincemeat out of Bush in the debate environment, yet was so condescending and unlikable that Bush got the increase in the polls instead. And Gore was considered a good debater, something Kerry is not (he was almost unwatchably bad and universally panned during all the pre-nomination Democratic candidate debates). Unless Bush has the worst performance of his life, or the moderated questions are criminally one-sided, it's difficult to believe Kerry could be helped by these high-profile image-conscious televised spectacles.

Ralph Nader, when defending against charges that he "cost" Gore the election in 2000 and might "cost" Kerry the election this year, generally says something to the effect of "if a candidate can't handily beat someone as weak as Bush, he doesn't deserve to win anyway." I think there's some truth to that. Bush isn't universally disliked in this country, but those who dislike him really, really hate him -- and world public opinion isn't far behind. The Democrats could have picked someone engaging and likable, someone with integrity and conviction and new ideas, who could have crushed Bush worse than Clinton over Dole in '96. But they didn't. They panicked away from their intriguing and interesting candidates and went with someone "safe" -- just like the Republicans did with Dole. Even with the intensity behind the anti-Bush crowd, it is incredibly difficult to unseat a president using only the argument "uh, I'm not him."

People already have a million reasons to vote against Bush. What they don't have is a reason to vote for John Kerry.

Sorry about the lack of postings this week -- incredibly busy on a number of tasks which are finally winding down. Besides, wouldn't you rather I was able to write every day of the upcoming Republican convention than during this week of relatively little news? :)

You can buy DEFEATJOHNJOHN mousepads and posters at clearance prices now through our Merchandising site, as an apology!

New postings are coming later tonight and tomorrow. With new polls showing Bush with his first lead over Kerry in many months and 527 controversies screamed about on every cable network from MSNBC to MTV, I think we'll have enough to discuss in the coming weeks, don't you?