Reader Network: What did you learn in this debate?

The Olympian • Published October 08, 2008

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South Sound readers were asked about what they learned about Sens. John McCain and Barack Obama during Tuesday night's debate, the second between the presidential candidates, and whether they changed their minds about whom they will vote for. The following are their responses, offered as part of The Olympian's Reader Network. To participate in future Reader Networks, go to www.theolympian.com/readernetwork.

• Attack policy: I think both candidates did very well. One thing I noticed, that I heard before but didn't take note of before, was Senator McCain repeating several times that one doesn't announce that if something does or doesn't happen, one will attack. Is he then advocating a policy like that of the Japanese some time back, an unannounced attack during a period of negotiation? As I recall, we didn't react too favorably to that approach at the time.

Evelyn Greenwalt, Olympia

• Obama searches for "sound bites": What did I learn? I learned that Barack Obama can sure say "and" a whole lot while he tries to come up with a suitable "sound bite" answer. ... John McCain is certainly my candidate of choice.

Steve Cole, Olympia

• Format was disappointing: There was nothing new or earth-shaking in tonight's debate. It did not change who I will be voting for. I heard the same talk about Obama being raised by his grandparents and McCain's military career. The "town hall" format did not result in the audience becoming involved in the discussion and was very disappointing. The debate got so boring that my wife left the room. The most exciting part was at the end when Tom Brokaw could not read the teleprompter.

Dennis Fetty, Olympia

• Health insurance issues: I must admit that I'm biased towards Obama so I look at McCain in a different way. First of all, I thought McCain looked old, hunched over, and walking stiffly. I'm tired of being referred to as "my friends" every few sentences. They both still talk in generalities although I think Obama gets the picture on what will happen with insurance companies if health insurance is given as a tax credit. I worked for an insurance company — they are profit-making organizations, not some kindly benefactors who want to hand out money to hospitals and doctors because it's the "right" thing to do.

Penny Hoffman, Olympia

• McCain dodges questions: One hour and five minutes into the debate and as yet, I have not heard John McCain directly answer a single question. He turned every issue into a personal attack against Senator Obama, lied about Obama's earlier statements, and over-used "my friends" and "I know how to do it." Trouble is, he never explained how. I'm still on the blue side and if I could, I'd vote twice.

Richard Jones, Tenino