The hug

I went to see the president
He had a bruise on his shoulder where big business places its thumb
His breath was powerful, and he reeked of compromise

– Jeb Puryear (Donna the Buffalo)

Let’s keep this image front and center between now and November:

The body language seems creepy to me, and weirdly reminiscent of the famous Annie Leibovitz photo of John and Yoko.*

I wonder about anyone who can embrace George W. Bush, literally or figuratively. I wonder if these two men ever had a conversation about the vicious shit Rove/Bush pulled on McCain in the 2000 campaign; I guess character assassination is just part of the deal, and I suppose McCain just decided to get over it. You know, like Mr Justice Scalia told CBS we should all just get over the 2000 election.

I wonder how a man can turn himself inside out, politically and morally, as John McCain has done. He seems like some kind of flesh-and-blood brochure for a heartless, soulless, murderous enterprise. He punctuates his speeches with a mirthless grin that looks as though he’s switching it on and off with a remote control in his pocket. And what sort of self-loathing would drive a former prisoner of war to defend and promote the torture policies of the Bush administration?

I resist a powerful urge to invest too much hope in Barack Obama. But my loathing for these Republican creeps is powerful, so I will probably be pretty happy even if Obama turns out to be less than we had all hoped for. He has already changed the world just by restoring the honor and dignity of the word compassion.

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* I’ve seen the John and Yoko photo in real life: The photographer Stu Levy has it in his fantastic photo collection. (Stu made this image of me. His grid portraits are very cool, and his landscapes are awesome.)