Neither candidate is what I'd call the best the parties have, but maybe I'm wrong.

I don't really feel like arguing with people about politics lately. I happen to think Bush is very underqualified for the job, and is a divider, not a uniter. Even if I agreed with his decisions and initiatives, I think I'd feel that a little diplomacy might help. Some wits would grease the wheels. Maybe he's a war president, but he's more of a Sonny than a Michael on the standard Corleone scale, if that's what you want. No wonder he's wearing a vest.

I don't much like Kerry, but it wouldn't hurt our perception in the world to elect the othrn, especially if you think they're interchangeable anyway.

Why people like Bush. Well there's the anti-intellectual thing, and always has been, so he's got that locked up pretty well. And I think some people simply find it refreshing to have someone who is happy for his advantages, and unapologetic, and looking out for his pals. That's what they'd do. The efforts to shame most Americans on things like this may hit, but they miss anyway. They're merely correct, and don't shame their targets at all. If you look at popular culture, I think you'll notice that we're liking stories of looking after our own interests, and to hell with everything else. Or, if I'm wrong, at least the Self-Help book market is still doing better than the Helping Others. And I've heard people say, about the war, "Well, we need the oil." That's all. No amount of accusation that the war is about oil will sway this opinion, so give up.
    This is my take, based on spying, and listening. I think people find Bush refreshingly cynical and unidealistic, and they like him also as an ersatz monarch, because they're tired of the whole dull, tedious, never-ending, weary chore of representative democracy. Argue ideals and righteous indignation all you want to people who are sick of it, but ask yourself if you really think it helps, or if you're just flattering yourself in the process. Guess what they think. They'll think you're a self-important fool, is all. If I was going to argue, I'd stick to pointing out that Bush is not very good at looking after his own or national interests. He's no Michael Corleone, he's Sonny, and he's going to screw up worse if he has the chance.