Friday, August 29, 2008

Old As The Hills

I had the kids watch Obama's acceptance speech last night (I do love how Michelle dresses, don't you?) and afterwards Theo was asking me some questions about the election. After I had explained some of Obama's positions on the issues and why people wanted to vote for him, Theo asked, "Well, why do people want to vote for McCain, then?"

Being an even-minded (read, undecided) voter, I listed some of McCain's strong points, ending with "He's an older man, which makes a lot of people feel that his judgment on important issues can be trusted."

"Yeah," said Theo, "but Obama's really old, too - he's in his 40's already!"

At which point I ended the discussion and dragged my ancient self up to bed.

[I have a post up at MidCenturyModernMoms, explaining why "Back To School" may not be greeted with much enthusiasm by my teen daughter and giving an important link to a new Nebraska law that seems to understand how we parents of teens feel at times. Check it out. I mean, if you feel like it. No pressure.]

22 comments:

  1. If Obama is considered old, McCain must be nearly in his deathbed.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Yanno I think it is GREAT that children are involved...my lilest bean is the biggest McCain supporter out there for 11 yr olds...it amazes me what she hears,learns and how she takes that to form her own opinion...get this she was in school from 9-3:40 and she comes home to tell me that McCain picked a woman for his running mate-she is sooooooo different from my older beans they at this stage in the game only care about friday night football and saturday date night but NOT my 5th grader-she may just be the next Tim Russert....and how the hell do beans get politics in the classroom now?

    NO matter who we are voting for she has formed her own opinion...and I think thats great...

    ReplyDelete
  3. Undecided here too...but if I read one more comment that Palin should be staying home with her special needs baby, I may puke.

    ReplyDelete
  4. So, before you dragged yourself up to bed you slapped him. Right?

    ReplyDelete
  5. Kids say the darndest things!

    ReplyDelete
  6. But wait! Did you read that whole article? You could leave your kid with a babysitter in Nebraska, and the BABYSITTER could surrender custody of him!! I wonder how hard it is then for the parents to get the kid back?! That whole law is kind of scary, if you think about that aspect of it.

    I just laughed when I saw McCain's "historic choice" for a running mate. Gee, think he's trying to counteract the historic moment of the first black man nominated to run for President? As my husband told me when I sputtered, ALL VPs are political tools.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Hmmm.. . Politics and crazy laws. Back to school and old isn't 40. Lots going on over here today.

    ReplyDelete
  8. It reminds me of the first time I was called Ma'am and turned around to see who they were referring to.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Yes, my daughter dylan was commenting how OLD i was just the other day. kids have such a way of pumping up your ego!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Stinker. He will get his someday.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Just to provide equal time commentary from my house: my 13-year-old son pointed at Michelle Obama while she watched Barack speak and asked if she was Barack's wife. We told him yes, she was. He said "He's lucky!"

    So Barack is old ... and Michelle is apparently a cougar!

    ReplyDelete
  12. Ah, we be old...and there ain't no doubt about it...I'm with Tootsie, he needed at least a smack upside the head!
    We started "back to school" this week..." reviewing stuff from June ;)
    It should be lots of fun to get Anna through all that Geometry.
    Pax, EJT
    PS. I ALWAYS click on your links! Promise.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Come on, cut the kid some slack. I know you remember feeling the same way. Good for you for educating you kids on the political system. You pretend to be a crazy mom, but we all know different.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Barack is a year older than I am, so he's "young". That's my story, and I'm sticking to it. ;)

    The question on the McCain ticket is, "Would you vote for Sarah Palin for president?" Cause that's what she's running for really. At the end of his term, McCain will have reached his statistical life expectancy of 78 years. This woman had better be good. Just in case.

    ReplyDelete
  15. Ha!! Gotta love kids. I am impressed that he actually paid enough attention to have questions to ask.

    ReplyDelete
  16. That made me laugh--made it sound like he was some 85 year old grandpa weaving in and out of the lane lines without a clue how to get home. I guess you'd have to have some kind of abilities in judgment to hold office as a senator. Though I disagree with him on plenty of other issues.

    ReplyDelete
  17. I salute you for giving your son a balanced view of both candidates--I really believe that if this partisan division is ever going to end, we have to start it at home with some healthy respect for BOTH points of view--good, old-fashioned respect.

    Oh, and that is one cray-zay law in Nebraska! Dang!

    ReplyDelete
  18. The matron is heading right over. . . . she's a die hard Obama fan :-).

    ReplyDelete
  19. My 7 year old asked me "Did the brown guy win?"

    ReplyDelete
  20. Wow. I think, though, that I'm glad I don't live in Nebraska. I'm pretty sure that in a fit of exasperated exhaustion, I might be childless. But just knowing about it, it gives a sort of peace and adds a little more weight to the "I'm going to sell you the gypsies" threat.

    ReplyDelete
  21. You and I may as well take out our teeth, stick them in the glass, and toddle off to drink our Maalox.

    ReplyDelete
  22. We had a similar conversation at my place--apparently my kids are under the impression that anything over 35 is old-you might as well be 72 as far as they are concerned....

    Blessings!

    ReplyDelete