So what if McCain is computer illiterate?

by David Grand
September 24, 2008

That's but one of the salvos fired at him as the Obama camp began its barrage of direct shots on McCain, not only aimed at his longtime career in the senate but on his personal shortcomings as well.

As Obama's campaign manager David Plouffe said in a strategy memo, "we will respond with speed and ferocity to McCain's attacks and we will take the fight to him, but we will do it on the big issues that matter to the American people."

As a lifelong Democrat, I relished the idea of Obama finally going on the offense, rather than continuing to take the highroad while the opposing camp was hitting him with everything but the kitchen sink. Like they say, turnabout is fair play.

However, I was in sharp disagreement with its commercials characterizing him, in effect, as an old fuddy-duddy who's out-of-touch with the times.

And when Obama spokesman Dan Pfeiffer said (with a straight face) the campaign was not making an issue of the 72-year old McCain's age, I nearly swallowed my Adam's apple in disbelief (being as I am of the same generation). For anyone who has the commonsense that god gave geese knows full well that's exactly the seed he wanted to plant in people's minds.

He then insulted my intelligence even more by questioning McCain's qualifications to be president, since he's a computer illiterate and doesn't even know how to send e-mails. Talk about interjecting a completely extraneous factor. For that's as irrelevant in choosing a president as is whether or not he wears false teeth or has hair, as all past presidents had (except for the 8th president Martin Van Buren).

And I'm sure a large percentage of Americans don't even own computers, let alone know how they operate. But again, they're not running for president, either.

Hey, I wouldn't even have one, if I hadn't  gotten writer's cramp from writing columns over the years in longhand and cluttering the floor with discarded pages.

Yes, I can send e-mails, know how to get on the web sites, and have learned the hard way what all those funny shaped icons stand for. But other than that, I'm dependent on it being merciful by informing me of what I've done wrong and how to correct it.

But my computer isn't to blame for the worst calamities that have befallen me; such as, when an electrical storm knocks off the power to the computer wiping out what I'd written, or my accidentally pushing the delete button and having to start all over from scratch.

If only I had taken a typewriter course in high school, no doubt I'd be able to churn out columns much faster than the whole morning its taken for me to do this one, for example. And if I was ever so foolish as to marry again, it would be to someone who is a skilled typist, who could relief me from this arduous, time consuming chore.

To be sure she'd perform that duty, I'd be inclined to put it in the prenuptial agreement (in small print).