John McCain: Blink
I just finished watching the presidential debate. When McCain’s turn came up, I was challenged to keep focused on what exactly he was saying. Why? Because his continual blinking was a constant, ongoing and annoying distraction. Over the course of the evening McCain’s blinking grew more and more irritating. By the time the debate was over I could barely stand it. Bill congratulated me for sitting it out from beginning to end.
Doing a Google search on “McCain +blinking” rendered 163,000 hits. In reading through some of the Google sources, it seems that it’s an ongoing irritation for a lot of people. Most people jump to the assumption that he’s lying. But blinking in of itself doesn’t indicate lying. It’s more a matter of when the blinking occurs that indicates whether a person is lying or not. In reading several online psychology sources, constant blinking doesn’t happen when someone is lying. Instead, it’s after the lying that the blinking occurs. While the lie is being told, blinking is reduced, but immediately after the lie is told, there’s usually a flurry of blinking. With McCain, it’s hard to tell because he blinks ALL THE TIME. However, it wasn’t just the constant blinking that put me off, granted it was annoying to count 50 blinks in a 33 second period, one third more than Obama from my personal counts (admittedly, when I’m curious, I’m curious to the point of being anal). What also bothered me was the fact that McCain didn’t seem to look over much at Obama and in fact, he seemed to talk at him rather than to him. I felt as if he was talking AT ME, too. Turning the sound off on the TV and merely focusing solely on body language between the 2 candidates did little to make me feel comfortable about John McCain. My discomfort level went up. McCain was fidgety, his laugh and smile seemed forced and insincere. Soon, I felt myself blinking and twitching (could watching John McCain on TV actually be harmful to my health?
Insofar as blinking and winning presidential elections, I really don’t know the statistics other than one citing I read, which stated: “In U.S. presidential elections over the past 25 years, the candidates who blinked fastest in the debates lost the election, except for 2000, when George W. Bush, the fastest blinker, lost the popular vote but won the electoral vote.” However, it is common and accepted knowledge that the 2000 election was one of the 2 most freakish elections in U.S. history, but I won’t digress.
The bottom line, when all is said and done, is that those who support McCain will likely continue to do so, just as those Obama supporters will stand by Obama. Somehow, and much to my never ending awe and amusement, we always defend the behaviors of our favorite candidates. Let’s just hope those who are undecided, decide wisely.
For your own awe and amusement, and interesting tidbits on blinking and lying, I have included the following references:
http://www.wickedlocal.com/wellesley/fun/x1973322880
http://www.mikeindustries.com/blog/archive/2005/02/blink-lies-and-videotape
Tags: John McCain, Politics, Rants
September 27th, 2008 at 11:45 am
I think he needs to eat more cake! That should take care of said problem, which he seems to have quite a bit! He does tend to have a crappy view of things.
September 27th, 2008 at 9:31 pm
It should come as little surprise that political conservatives have an excess of constipation issues. It would seem they lack a diet high in fiber and rather engross themselves in a diet high in pork and fat.
Mr. McCain would be a liberal if he took some exlax.
September 27th, 2008 at 10:46 pm
This guy used to be good. Maybe he’s too old now. I still might vote for him, but probably not. I might just stay home.
September 30th, 2008 at 6:05 pm
The guy doesn’t have to blink to lie. He says one thing and then an hour later says the total opposite. McCain has become a joke.