How 'Bout Them Republicans?

The Republican National Convention ended on a much better note than it started thanks to both Cindy and John McCain who took higher ground than at least two of the speakers on Wednesday night: Fred Thompson and Sarah Palin.

Sarah Palin, Sen. McCain's vice-presidential choice, has dynamic public speaking skills, but I was disappointed in her tendency to puncuate her speech with mean-spirited zingers which I believe are simply uncalled for no matter what the situation. Modeling that type of negative behavior in front of the American people and our children is not helpful. It is that attitude that it's acceptable to treat others without respect or kindness and as lesser than ourselves that leads to bullying in our society.

I could not understand Mrs. Palin's mocking attitude and the audience's hearty agreement--marked by the entire arena bursting into laughter--when she referred to Barack Obama's work as a community organizer. How is that any less important than the work she has done? Community organizing is what people do when they feel they are not being helped by the government that serves them.

Most of this nation's greatest movements and moments of growth can be traced directly to community organizing, also called "grassroots action": Take the Civil Rights movement and women seeking the Vote, just to name a couple.

As I said at the beginning, the McCains reached higher in their speeches and did not use them as opportunities to mock others or label others' accomplishments as less important. For that, I'm grateful.

And now, the race is on.