The Final Debate - First Thoughts.

Much to my surprise, I thought the debate last night was the best one yet. There were a couple of pretty lame questions, but in general I thought the discussion he provoked was vigorous and fairly worthwhile to listen to. Both candidates appeared a bit tired and were fumbling over words at times, but they each had moments of surprising clarity. Obama, in the end, can claim victory, if only because he didn't have to do a whole lot. He stuck reliably to a good format: spend the first half of his responses negating McCain's attacks, and spend the second half of the response offering his policy plans. McCain, as a result, was left perpetually on the offense, taking potshots at an opponent who was too calm and too well-prepared for his attacks to do any damage.

It's also worth mentioning that McCain's spastic grinning and irrepressible eye-rolls didn't do much to mask his contempt. Thanks to Anna for tipping me off that there's already been an animated gif made.