presentation is everything?

An election is a job interview process. You want to present yourself well, taking the time and trouble to learn about all aspects of the job, the country, and the people you would be working for and with.

Those who say that, say, a lapel pin doesn't matter, a hand over the heart doesn't matter - such people don't seem to understand that, yes, a lot of people do view this as a job interview. We see ourselves as future employers, charged with a responsibility on the one hand - and entitled to a certain respect, on the other hand.

Barack Obama knows that you don't send a resume covered with crud. You don't go to an interview with a holier-than-thou attitude. You don't insult the guy who is in charge of hiring.

He doesn't care, because he doesn't see this as a job interview process. He doesn't seem to think we're capable of diagnosing our own problems correctly, so therefore he need not worry about what we think of him. He has made it abundantly clear that he does not believe in democracy. He will not even pay lip service to the idea that everyday Americans can and should and do have a stake in the election process.

I've said before, of course, that I very much wonder how much insulting the rubes is a deliberate campaign strategy, designed to appeal to that sense of superiority, uniting everyone by their hatred of what is wrong with America. The rubes would here be symbolic of what needs changing.