Highs and Lows

You know when someone tells you to see that movie, or listen to that band because it's like the best fucking thing ever on the planet? Then you go see aforementioned band or movie and it really is not all that and a bag of chips? The expectations were just too high; unless the band was Radiohead and the movie The Dark Knight nothing could save your experience in the face of such mammoth expectations.

We all know it's the vice presidential debate tonight and unless you have been hiding under a rock for the last 6 months, you know that a senator with more than 30 yrs experience and an Alaskan governor of less than 2 yrs are going at each other, face to face, toe to toe, mano a womano, inside a steel cage (note: vice presidential candidates will not be debating in a steel cage ... unless FOX hosts the debate).

You may also be aware that this Alaskan governor has not been performing particularly well in interviews (and polls alike) since she was introduced as the VP nominee at the RNC. Instead of appearing like a well suited VP candidate, she has sounded like an unqualified hopeful employee desperately trying to save her job interview by spewing incomprehensible pre-K level sentence fragments and showing a frightening lack of knowledge in her desired field.

Tonight, millions will be licking their chops waiting, expecting a public blunder of epic proportions from Sarah Palin; many will expect Joe Biden to run verbal circles around her in hope that she vomits and passes out in front the American viewers (note: drink every time this happens). A performance like this – or something similar to the humorously terrifying Couric interviews – would most certainly satisfy the expectations of anyone hoping to see Barak Obama become president.

But what if she doesn't? What if she gives a sub par performance, but actually succeeds in forming coherent sentences and forming elementary points – like anybody with a high school diploma should be able do – it would be considered a success. Expectations are so low, or high depending on your perspective, that Sarah Palin can probably go out there, perform like Joe six-pack American, and be touted by some as the winner.

While indulging in the highs and low of this presidential race can be nothing short of satisfying, it can also provide a strong platform for a counter attack, strategy, plan, whatever– just ask Britney Spears–and if Sarah Palin sounds anything like a regular human being she will most likely be paraded as a victim of the media by the GOP.

Even though a perspective on an even keel is the probably the best way to approach this debate (like walking in to a movie without reading a review, or listening to a band for your own fruition), without expectation, that is not possible for the majority following this presidential race; and with the expectations for a Sarah Palin fuck up running high, I can only hope for a performance of Dark Knight-esque proportions.