Who Hampshire?

• Another bullshit theory I'm entertaining is that Clinton won on character. I don't mean that she's done anything to prove her resolve or anything like that. Rather, I think the tearing up incident from yesterday gave voters insight into her inner life in a way that was more genuine than Edwards has provided and much, much more intimate than anything that we've seen from Obama.
  
• Ok, so after Iowa everyone was change. Next week will everyone be looking out for the invisible Americans? I'm betting yes. More seriously, I think that there's every indication that Clinton's victory was attributable to a kind of feminist backlash. Which backlash I'm a little bit ambivalent about. On the one hand, Clinton is easily my least favorite Democratic candidate. On the other, I'm eager to live in a country where the feminist backlash trumps the anti-feminist backlash. And with that, maybe I'll link to this.
  
• I'm actually preferring Obama's New Hampshire concession speech to his widely praised victory speech in Iowa. The Iowa speech, I thought, was pretty darn uplifting and inspiring but once it was over and I had a chance to wipe away the sweat I found myself wondering what the big deal was. I'm supposed to feel uplifted by a victory in the Iowa caucus? What? How is this guy going to react when an American team wins the Little League World Series? I predict that it will be a transformative event that lifts all of our souls and allows us to know the heart and mind of America.
  
• Does Obama have purple lips, or is there something wrong with my television?
  
• NPR, MSNBC and probably everybody else are calling the race for Clinton. Assuming that the projected result holds up, my powers of prognostication look weak. I'd assumed that heavy turnout necessarily meant an Obama victory. Guess not.
  
• In Michigan primary news, it turns out that neither Edwards nor Obama are on the Democratic ballot. This has to do with the February 5 Controversy you've been hearing so much about. The latest news in which, I learned today, was that the Democratic Party has gone ahead and cancelled the Michigan delegation's hotel reservations. So, my options are (a) vote for a candidate with no chance; (b) vote for Clinton; (c) vote 'uncommitted' and hope that (i) the Party will allow the delegates to be seated and that (ii) the delegates will choose to vote for a candidate of whom I approve; or, (d) not vote. Alternately, because Michigan has open primaries, I could choose to vote in the Republican primary. A vote for Romney is looking pretty good, but maybe he's more electable than I suspect.
  
• As I write this, the MSNBC crew is laughing in derision at John McCain's speech. But you know what's got me wondering? Why such focus on the winner? Democrats award delegates proportionally in all states, and the GOP awards delegates proportionally in New Hampshire. This being so, there's really not much that hangs on winning outright. Other than perception, of course. Which apparently matters.