Outside of his vacation making Obama look like John Kerry, the notion he "learned" anything is silly. If the man didn't know what he was doing before he went on vacation, he wasn't going to find it out while on vacation. What the voters learned might end up being far more important to his future.

Your entire post is nothing but nonsense.

How does taking a vacation to the place you grew up make you look like John Kerry? Bush is also currently on vacation in Crawford. Does he look like John Kerry, too? John McCain has multiple vacation homes. (He also recently "joked" that being rich is earning $5 million--but never mind, it is that Hawai'i vacation that makes Obama out-of-touch).

Obama has more than demonstrated he knows what he is doing. Not only did he win the Democratic primary, he delivered two historic speeches during the campaign, made a historic trip abroad, and has, most importantly, outlined policies that are far more evolved than McCain backpedaling, bluster, and continuous attacks.

Finally, there is nothing for the voters to have learned from this vacation. It is a rare voter that doesn't believe that everyone deserves rest and relaxation on occasion.

I have to agree with the Kerry comparison. The body surfing photo makes him look like Peter Pan heading off to Neverland. Not smart - and I'm sure we'll be seeing it again during the GE.

So what does the photo of Numbnut being carried out of the stands in Bejing look like?

This is all so silly anyway to criticize a man for where he goes on vacation. If the election turns on superficial things like this to include flag pins, Muslim innuendoes, etc. then this country can no longer be taken seriously. It won't be that the Democrats blew it. It will be that the country has become Paris Hilton. (Sorry Paris.) Focused on glam and denial of reality. Folks, there are BIG issues out there: deficit spending, partisan gridlock, two unending wars, global warming. By not taking a leadership position on these issues, the US will demonstrate that it is decidedly in decline. The result is a loss of influence in the world. We see this right now with Russia.

He should have just surfed. Like his three-point shot, catching a wave on a proper longboard would have gotten him cool points. Body surfing looks silly, and is too easy to mock. :-)

I think if those vacation pictures are viewed as a negative that is because the person is looking for something negative. The guy obviously is or was a jock so I think it would do him good to be seen doing more athletic things. I know he shot that 3 pointer but I always thought those pictures of Bill and I think even Bush going out for a jog made them more human. I think some maybe many view Obama a wimp but considering in his younger days he was a talented BBall player my guess is that he has a very tough side. Show him playing BBall with some real players driving the lane or taking a charge and it would have to help.

I think that on both sides there are many people that are just angry and have lost all sense of objectivity. What the other side does is bad and what their side does is good. It has turned our races into theater of the absurd. Neither candidate is right on everything, nor wrong on everything.

"...then this country can no longer be taken seriously."

Oh, don't worry. It isn't. :-(

Elections always turn on silly things - it's called marketing. That's why you don't hand the other side ammunition.

Unfortunately the original poster is right. Kerry took a major hit in the macho department when the pictures were published of him windsurfing while on vacation. It was compaired to Bush's pictures of fishing and mountain biking and "clearing brush" on his non-working ranch. End result - Kerry came across looked like and effite snob while Bush carried on with his fake image of being an everyman kind of guy.

Like it or not, the American public wants to see their presidents as manly type men doing manly type activies. And once a candidate gets tarred with the "wimp" label, it's nearly impossible to get rid of. Remember Kerry's hunting trip? He looked like an overgrown kid in a Halloween costume. Say what you will about John McCain - no one is every going to call him a wimp. Obama, on the other hand is coming perilously close to giving the Republican slime machine a lot of ammunition.

This conversation is depressing. We care about a picture of Obama messing around in the ocean while he's on holiday? McCain probably sits in a recliner watching Wheel of Fortune on his vacation days.

Show him playing BBall with some real players driving the lane or taking a charge and it would have to help.

Ok raptor, here you go: <link>

That's Tyler 'Psycho T' Hansbrough he's shooting over. I'd like to see McCain try that. I guess you all are right; we all want to see something relatable out of the candidates, and recreation time is a good way to see what they're really like. I'm a big basketball fan, so I love that Obama plays. But if you're a hunter or a Nascar fan or whatever, I guess you wouldn't be so impressed.

Interesting, prior to this election people were comparing Obama to political figure with the initials JK - John Kennedy.

But as your post suggests the McCain campaign will start connecting Obama to another political figure with the initials JK - John Kerry especially after this vacation.

Kennedy was the first elected Roman Catholic president. Kerry was simply a loser.

If you are Obama, who do you want to be associated with Kennedy or Kerry?

ohioisforbuckeyes:

If you are Obama, who do you want to be associated with Kennedy or Kerry?

Neither. What is the deal with constantly having to compare current presidential candidates with past ones? It's ridiculous! Each candidate comes with his own unique set of positives and negatives.

From what I've read over the last 8 years, Bush is Reagan, Lincoln, Truman, FDR, Coolidge, and Teddy Roosevelt all rolled into one!

Oh, and Batman. That was Glenn Beck's contribution. I swear his show needs a warning label: "Warning, your IQ may drop 10-20 point with repeated viewers of this show".

What was I saying? Oh, yeah, stupid comparisons. Enough of these already.

Obama swimming in the ocean makes him look effete? Obama spending time with his daughters makes him look less manly?

I will tell you what--if anyone actually believes that, they are truly moronic.

Peter Pan? Really? You also probably think this picture of world record breaking Michael Phelps looks like, what, Superman?

I honestly cannot believe how asinine the political discourse has become when people are finding fault with something as trivial as body surfing. Really, get fucking over it.