I only caught brief excerpts from the speeches at last night's Republican Convention so I don't have much to say about what went on there…but could it possibly be true what some websites are now claiming? That George W. Bush and all the others spoke about John McCain's prisoner-o'-war days and the agony he endured but were careful not to use the "t" word?
I can understand them hiding Cheney (even they don't like Cheney) and configuring Bush's appearance so there'd be no expectation of a standing ovation, either when the tape started or concluded. But to avoid the word "torture" in telling McCain's story? Next thing you'll be telling me is that no one mentioned Afghanistan.
Oh, well. I'll bet America didn't hear the word "values" more than two or three thousand times. That's fast becoming one of those words that suggests one is listening to a snake oil vendor. There's nothing wrong with it, per se…but when it's used, someone is probably trying to say something they don't want to spell out and therefore have to defend. "He shares your values" means "He supports all your prejudices, even the irrational ones, but can't afford to be specific." This may apply to Democrats even more than it does to Republicans but it applies to both.
I'm going to tune in or at least TiVo Sarah Palin's speech. Judging from all the reports, she's apparently going to come onstage and prove she's qualified for the job by killing a moose.