Everybody is blogging about the president’s speech. His tie, his hair. His ill-use of the language.
I didn’t watch it all, I prefer the written to the spoken word, I read the transcripts later. I watched enough. What I saw, was something maybe other people didn’t see, and I wonder if I’m alone.

The presidency wears on people; Look at the inaugural pics and the retirement pictures of past presidents and you’ll see what I mean. Dubya is no different- he walks a bit more slowly, he has a few more lines in his face, he maybe even stoops- the weight on his shoulders must be more than any of us can possibly imagine. No, that’s not what i saw.

What I saw, what I didn’t expect to see, when I saw him step up to the podium, is a man of some actual substance. Maybe you don’t agree with things he’s done, maybe you dislike his policies. I certainly think less of him as the better choice than as the lesser of two evils.

Still, he’s not a hollow man. He is not a mask. He has something going on in that head, and agree or disagree, he’s the President.

Compare, say, to Klintoon, who had as much substance as a marshmallow peep. Compare to Carter, who had as much substance as a fart.

This is going to be a hard summer for GWB. I don’t envy him the road he must travel. I hope he wins so he can maybe show more of his substance and do some actual irrevocable good. Most of all, I hope he continues to show the substance he is made of, he’s over damned due.