Aug 17 2008
The Mc Cain / Obama Saddleback Debate with Rick Warren
I must confess
that I was really impressed by this debate with the presidential candidates and Rick Warren. Before the debate (which took the form of 60 mins each, same questions and with neither hearing the other), Warren said Americans needed to get over demonising those who thought differently, or held opposing worldviews. WOW I thought that is so what it seems like over here. Their are TWO camps, Republican or Democrat and never the twain shall met. I’d like to know what Mark Twain would say about this state of affairs!
In NZ it is not so one eyed about politics. I didn’t realise how pluralistic we really were until I came here on holiday.
ANYways back to the debate. I was hugely impressed on several levels.
A. The honesty and humanity of both Mc Cain and Obama in answering the questions. Impressed with them being there in the first place.
B. The depth of the questions. These weren’t as Warren said easy questions, and he didn’t want ’stump speech answers’. (campaign I wana win vote answers)
C. I was impressed that Christians were behind setting this up, and being salt to society. Sadly lacking in a beat up the fundamentalist kind of world.
D. I felt like I did get an ‘apples to apples’ kind of comparison of the candidates. They are both not perfect but I could see who they were and where they were coming from a bit more.
In this debate I so saw how the media has pushed Obama to the fore, how they have played the good footage etc and how they had done the reverse to Mc Cain. Mc Cain came over as a man of convictions, humour and deep passion. I had not seen this in the media. I liked how he saw America needed to see and work beyond its own self interests.
I know who I think would be the kind of president America needs. And they both need our prayers. I believe they are both good men.
