Palin v. Biden, The One And Only

1. Hey, what's that under the tumble-fur of dog hair in the corner? Oh, right. Those are Palin's expectations tonight.
2. Here we go.
3. "Can I call you Joe?" A disarming move? Or just her?
   
4. About 13 minutes in, it's kinda boring, by golly.
5. Biden is good at this. He should be.
6. Her answer on small businesses and taxes is the answer McCain SHOULD have given last week.
7. There's a scene in Rocky III where Rocky starts to taunt Mr. T in the ring. One trainer says to the other trainer, "What's he doing?" The trainer replies, "He's makin' him mad." I think Palin's "makin' him mad."
8. 9:31 p.m. BREAKING NEWS: "Ratings for the debate have dropped dramatically as all people who hate Sarah Palin have now thrown hammers through their screens, destroying their TVs."
9. Climate change is all man-made? I'm willing to take some of the blame, even with my new bike, but don't blame me for those nasty volcanoes and farting cows.
10. She's had a few... ok, more than a few slips of tongue and twisted words that just scream that she's had her brain packed with so many names and facts that one's liable to just pop out at any time.
11. Jordan? Egypt? Where'd she pull those from? That was a good answer.
    
12. Biden appears annoyed to even have to answer these questions.
    
13. Polls show, half of the people sitting in our living room have stopped listening.
14. UPDATE: Dodgers 1, Cubs 0... grr.
15. UPDATE: Dodgers 2, Cubs 0... grrrr.
16. It's pretty clear in watching this that Saturday Night Live, and the like, have succeeded in making Sarah Palin a caricature of herself.
17. UPDATE: Dodgers 5, Cubs 0... GRRRRRRRRRRRRRR.
18. The "bad joke" line was a good one.
19. Biden pulls a Michael Scott. "What's your greatest weakness?" "I work too hard."
20. Biden's answers about his family is powerful.
21. Gwen Ifill got grief for her Obama book, and rightfully so, but she's done a good job tonight.
22. Palin's closing was strong.
23. Biden's too.

Palin wins by not throwing up on her shoes; Biden wins by looking like a stronger presidential candidate than his own running mate.

Seriously, Palin did well. I can't say there was a real winner or a loser. They both did what they needed to do.

UPDATE: I'm blown away! The focus group of "independents" on Fox News were unanimous in a Palin win, and in glowing terms.