9th Congressional Debate30 Oct 06
Posted by M. Wright | Filed in: Uncategorized
A little article I wrote for the Main Street Journal’s November issue on Saturday’s debate is available online.
I’ve gotten so used to writing with unlimited space and no deadlines that it was a real challenge presenting a dated event (the issue comes out after the election) in a way that will still be somewhat relevant in the aftermath, and keeping it under 500 words; writing with such restrictions is much more difficult than what I do here. It’s been so long since I wrote a poem or feature story that I’ve nearly forgotten how to work with such precision; if nothing else, this was a good exercise.
October 30th, 2006 at 1:31 pm
Was a third of the debate about the space program, too, or just a third of your article? Is there a big NASA installation in Memphis that I don’t know about?
October 30th, 2006 at 2:48 pm
The candidates were asked which programs they would cut from the federal budget, and Cohen mentioned NASA. But those four sentences of the article aren’t just about NASA, but rather about what Cohen’s answer reveals about his political outlook and about the electorate in Memphis. I’m surprised you didn’t catch that.
October 30th, 2006 at 4:12 pm
I caught that. I was just curious why Memphis wanted three paragraphs about NASA. Since you live there, I thought you knew something I didn’t. Guess not.
October 30th, 2006 at 4:16 pm
Huh? If you caught the fact that it wasn’t just about NASA, but rather something deeper, why are you still wondering why there was so much “about NASA”?
October 30th, 2006 at 5:11 pm
Look, I’m sure there were any number of points made in the debate that actually speak to Memphis as well as NASA does (or maybe not: who am I to guess the quality of political debate in Tennessee?) Yet you chose NASA. I get that you were making a larger point with it. I just wanted to know why NASA speaks to Memphis better than, say, prescription drugs.
October 30th, 2006 at 5:37 pm
I “chose NASA” because
1. Cohen didn’t say he wanted to cut prescription drugs, but rather the space program;
2. It was one of the most revealing answers of the night, in a debate that was otherwise largely focused on trivia (sample question: what was the biggest mistake of your campaign since the end of the primary until now? answer: we didn’t print enough large t-shirts) or was a rehash of things already said in previous debates. There were a few other juicy, scandal-driven tidbits, but those were already covered by other writers; and
3. Cohen’s comment about NASA speaks to the change in our national scope from something big and bold — reaching for the stars — to something small and common — grabbing our slice of the pie. And that was the point of the article. Not about NASA. Not even necessarily about Memphis. But instead about our national attitude and view of government.
October 30th, 2006 at 7:16 pm
It’s an interesting take, then.