2008: A Strange Odyssey....and it continues

With still over two months to go, 2008 has proven to be one of the strangest years in recent memory. All one has to do is see that the Tampa Bay Rays are in the World Series and one scratches their head in amazement. What has gone on here?

The year started with a bang. Our New Year's hangover hadn't faded quite yet when Barack Obama stormed out of nowhere to win the Iowa Caucus and those all over took a second look at his campaign and wondered, can stop the Clinton Machine? We trudged through the winter and then spring as Obama and Hillary duked it out in a strange, bizarre, and almost insane primary contest. It was beginning to look like one of those college football games that heads into overtime. Neither team can close out the deal as both fire in touchdowns left and right. The game continues. No ties in this match-up, someone eventually had to win. I'd become Pavlov's dog watching CNN on the night of a primary contest, and just by hearing the CNN's jingle they played whenever results came in caused my focus to shift directly to my TV preparing for the results to be read by bearded wonder Wolf Blitzer. It dragged on. Finally on a warm night in late June, Barack Obama sealed the deal. The young, freshman Senator from Illinois who captivated the attention of so many just four years prior as a state senator speaking at the 2004 Democratic Convention would be the Democratic nominee for President of the United States. Who would've thought? Barack Obama beat the Clintons... Strange indeed.

This odd behavior was not as noticeable with the Republicans, yet a strange campaign certainly took place. Rudy Giuliani, an early favorite to capture the nomination decided to take the dumbest road in modern campaign history, putting all of your resources in one state. On top of that, it was a state that couldn't even figure out how to vote properly. We saw a TV personality capture the attention of Conservatives for a while, but once people heard Fred Thompson fumbling his words, and not making much sense, he retreated and headed back to Law & Order, where he belongs. Mitt Romney scared the hell out of everyone with a smile that never seemed to fade, his campaign decided to do what he couldn't. Mike Huckabee, the likable former governor of Arkansas, who looked down and out kept going and really connected with Republicans all over the country and showed some how you can win without huge sums of money, or receiving the national spotlight. However, he too had to concede to a man that just months earlier looked like a man stranded in the water at the beginning of a Jaws sequel. That man was John McCain. 

Who would've thought McCain could pull back into this race and get to the finish line for the Republicans? He was royally crapped on by Bush's campaign in 2000 (odd that he employs the same operatives who did the crapping) yet eight years later he captivated the attention of Republicans and pissed off others. 

No one at the start of 2008 ever believed this election would come down to Barack Obama and John McCain. Yet it has. With less than two weeks left until this election is over and done with, there is still work that both candidates must do to secure victory. Strange happenings could still happen and most certainly will, in just a week, Barack Obama will run a 30 minute ad on the major networks, even delaying the start of game 6 of the World Series. If that isn't strange and unusual, I'm sure what else is. Until then.... stay weird.