Wimps

Oh fer pete's sake!

When I was a college freshman, I was on the debating team. This meant travel, preparation, competition and inappropriate behaviour (Oops! Scratch that last.)

This was not a love fest. In particular, it wasn't a love fest when competing against Canadian debaters, who follow British debating rules: that is, there are no rules. Our coach tried to prepare us for this experience without departing from American debating rules. No good: we still sat down in rooms festooned with our intellectual innards after meeting Canadian teams.

I'm shaking my head over the once-intellectual Republicans' response to the Biden-Ryan debate. Even defenders of the administration are quick to endorse the Republican bleats that Biden was "mean," or "rude" or "disrepectful."

Of course he was. He was debating. For the most part, Ryan was just showing up.

Debate is a contact sport, and words are edged weapons. If you can't handle that, then you're a candy-ass wimp and you don't belong in the competition.

One hopes that Obama will learn from the example.

Wake me if anyone in American politics ever has an actual debate.