So, we’ve been thinking about this comment from a reader named Larry on this post the other day:

OK, I haven’t wanted to comment on these, but I am:

I’m no conservative, and I’m not planning on voting for McCain, but for the love of god, can you stop with the rampant “MCCAIN AND PALIN ARE EVIL!!!!!11″ stuff? Can you at least TRY to have a fair view on this election? I love this blog, it’s awesome, and I read it daily… but seriously, don’t you think this is getting petty? I bet 99% of the people who read this blog already don’t plan on voting for McCain, why keep going on like this?

How about at least ONE anti-Obama post just to mix it up?

Larry, we’ll be the first to say it: You bring up a good point, and we’ll get to your questions, but first, let’s define the pre-existing condition you refer to. This site — and so many of our friends and contemporaries — are suffering from full-blown election hysteria these days. I can’t say when it really kicked in, but let’s, just for the sake of argument, throw a pin down on the weeks that led up to the PA primary. This was the time when it became apparent that Pennsylvania, and by extension Philadelphia, would have a huge say in this election. Though many folks had strong opinions before that for sure, back in April it became apparent that all of us are/were invested in this contest more than anyone ever thought they’d be.

There is a running joke that’s made on Philebrity every so often, that Philadelphia is not really a part of America, and hasn’t been since sometime in the 70s or 80s. And like all jokes, there’s a kernel of truth there. It is our belief that Philadelphia is more like America than America itself, as it’s known today, with endless sprawl, strip malls and religious zealots running roughshod over everything in between, including the minds of people either made too fearful or willfully ignorant of the ideas that were so boldly put down to paper here, in this city, over 200 years ago. Because of Philly’s constant reminders of the words of the Founding Fathers, it’s been impossible not to take notice as, over the last eight years, the country has been torn from its original framework by people who clearly do not come from anything even close to The America We Know. What has happened in those years has not just been an affront to America and the world at large; it’s also been an affront to our history and traditions as Philadelphians.

But of course, you know all this. And it’s certainly no lie to say that Philebrity has, over these last months, grown more and more hysterical as the campaigns plod on. The reasons are simple: For one, we are ANGRY. For another we’re pumped — though the word has been pummelled into near meaninglessness, real change is in fact within our sights. So when we slip into pep rally mode, well, you can hardly blame us. And finally, just about every post on Philebrity presumes that we are, whether we really are or not, among friends. Bearing that in mind, we’ve never really felt honor-bound to be objective about anything, whether it’s a band or a presidential candidate. After all, this is a blog. After we can afford to get health insurance, maybe then we’ll start thinking about being nicer to the other side. Until then, we’re gonna go raw-dog on anyone we perceive to be taking away freedoms, opposing reason in its many beautiful forms, or simply phoning it in because they don’t think you’re as smart as you are. Which, as it happens, is pretty much the McCain platform.

So let’s do you — and ourselves — a solid here. In the comments on this post, let’s parse apart the Obama platform, and talk about what in there is real and what is window dressing. Are Obama and Biden acting like they wanna muscle up on Pakistan just to play the game? Isn’t that kind of bullshit? And not for nothing, the health care platform seems kinda muddy. We’re not changing our vote or our support — too much relies on it — but let’s make a concerted effort to at least act like everything in us does not want to crush the McFail campaign and all who sail in it. You know why? They’ve got problems much worse than ours. Maybe they could use a little understanding. After all, nobody likes to lose.

This entry was posted on Friday, October 10th, 2008 at 12:54 pm.