The Worst Kind of Louts

So I've been running around all day, and haven't had much time to check in, but apparently tonight's debate was a train wreck (I wouldn't know because it's tape delayed for the West Coast), as Charlie Gibson and George Stephanopoulos spent the first hour asking about important issues like flag pins and William Ayers (a question which was fed to him by Sean Hannity and lesser lights of the right-wing noise machine) instead of minor things like the torture of human beings planned inside the White House or an endless war in Iraq.

Outside of being infuriating, isn't this just stupid of ABC? Barack Obama is more likely than not of becoming the next President, is it really worth it to relentlessly insult him? I mean, I can't imagine Obama ever going on that network again.

Here's a list of things that didn't get discussed.

Let's tote up the colossal, the major, and also the very, very big issues that ABC's Gibson and Stephanopoulos have not deigned to bring up: Health care; the recession; Afghanistan; the mortgage crisis; deregulation; veterans' care; torture; restoring America's image abroad; the surveillance state; the environment.

When their FCC license is finally taken away for intentionally acting outside the public interest, will anyone care?

You can ask them yourself at 212-456-7777. Ask for News, then press 2 then 199 and you can leave a message for "Other News".

I actively hate this media. Star Magazine would have pulled off a better debate.

...There are almost 5,000 comments on ABC's website right now, almost all of them lambasting this horrific debate.

...Howard Wolfson is somehow DEFENDING this atrocity. All class, Wolfson. Because the most egregious shots were all taken at Obama, Clinton's team has no problem with what amounts to a Hannity-style attack job. And enough with this "it's a fair question because the Republicans would bring it up." It's easier for them to do so when the Democratic opponent brings it up first. And by the way, Republicans LIE. They'll bring up anything and everything without any kind of respect for the truth. So you might as well ask how many Americans each of these candidates have raped, because some nutjob winger is bound to bring that up in the fall, too.

I think I'm going to throw my television out the window.