Jared Rea

That was a close one. Biden was absolutely brilliant, in case you missed it.

“But remember! No politics! Issues confuse people!”

Poor Batman. He wants to run a straight and honest campaign, but the foolish antics of McCa- err, I mean, the Penguin, will do everything he can to distract voters from the real issues. Reading far too much into a Batman episode aside, this is still the funniest video I’ve seen in ages.

Don’t you see, America? Batman is speaking to you.

A day later and I’m still trying to absorb Barack Obama’s “The American Promise.” It seems almost tired at this point to gush over his incredible speeches, but this is different. For as cheesy as this this sounds, I feel not only inspired to live up to a greater potential, but, for the first time in my adult life, a better American.

You know, whatever that means.

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I swore that I’d never change my Marty O’Donnell gamerpic, but after both yesterday’s video and a rousing speech by Senator Kennedy, I felt inspired to stand a bit taller. May the brilliance of his mullet shine upon those whose Xbox’s are deemed noble. Good night, sweet prince. And flights of angels sing thee to thy rest.

The avatar swap was made as a show of support for Microsoft and MTV’s recent Rock the Vote collaboration (even if I still prefer the wonderfully ludicrous “Vote or Die”) which will not only provide streaming election coverage to Xbox 360 owners but more importantly, allow them to register to vote. Not that I enjoy the idea of your average Xbox Live citizen being enabled with the power of the vote, but I do appreciate the advocacy.

Whether these new voters go on to cast their ballot for Barack Obama, John McCain, or hell, even Bob Barr, I can only hope that this somewhat risky team-up inspires the youth of Xbox Live take a serious look at the issues and realize just how important this election is. I guess I have a somewhat selfish reason for wanting this, as I recall standing outside the voting booth in 2004, realizing that I was the only person under the age of 30 at my station. My generation simply can not afford to remain ignorant to the ever changing world around them.

This is about as far as a random joke on Twitter should probably go.

Much like how Rudy Giuliani became known for nothing more than a noun, a verb and 9/11 (By the way, I’m pumped for Biden), Senator John McCain has put himself in a position where he stands for little more than his time as a prisoner of war during Vietnam. When the Obama campaign nailed him for forgetting how many houses he owns, John McCain cried POW. When the fact that McCain was not in a “cone of silence” during the Saddleback forum came to light, McCain responded with POW. Even when offering up his wife in a wet t-shirt contest, the answer was POW. And these were just a few of the instances that a quick google search turned up. The google search necessary only because I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve heard this excuse in the past week alone.

John McCain uses his prisoner of war status as both sword and shield. It’s the entirety of his foreign policy experience and ultimate defense against legitimate questions and concerns rolled into a single onomatopoeia.

I wouldn’t have such a problem with this had he utilized his tragic experience in some sort of relevant way. For example, as an advocate for better care and rehabilitation for our troops coming back from the Middle East with post traumatic stress disorder and other conditions, as I’m sure he knows exactly what that feels like. Or how about shining a light on not only the veterans of our current wars, but those of past wars who had no home to come back to? I’d gladly accept his lame, “I lived in one house for five and a half years,” joke were it in that context. Instead, his experience has become just that: a punchline.

Typically, these sorts of opinion pieces are accompanied by a disclaimer. Something like, “John McCain is a national hero and deserves respect for his time as a prisoner of war, but!” The “but,” this time being that I don’t care for that disclaimer. Until John McCain shows some respect for not only himself but his fellow veterans by not trivializing something so horrible, I don’t feel the need to respect it either.