www.johnkerry.com

www.georgewbush.com

The GW Bush website is incredibly negative!  It currently has pictures of Kerry, Al Sharpton, Ted Kennedy, Al Gore, Michael Moore and some other liberals that conservatives love to hate in strange emphatic positions.  It is really upsetting to then go on and to read that the Bush-Cheney campaign is complaining that they have been outspent by the Kerry-Edwards campaign with a 2 to 1 ratio for negative campaigning.  Their very home page tears Kerry apart agressively for flip-flopping and “remaking” himself.

The flashy text that reads “Kerry’s extreme makeover” makes the site look literally like a tabloid magazine.  Honestly, when I went to it I thought it was a parody site.

I am not saying this as a resident of Kerry’s home state, or someone living in ultra-liberal Cambridge.  I am saying this as someone who just visited both websites and saw some really nice photos on the Kerry-Edwards campaign talking about the future and a new America.

Go to them, and see for yourself.  The contrast is really striking!

Like pretty much everyone else in the city of Boston (or at least Cambridge), I’ve spent the last week talking about the Democratic National Convention.  Since I’m against talking about my political views on this site, I’m just going to stick to the more interesting stuff — all the madness surrounding the convention.

First, so many of my friends and acquaintances who work in downtown Boston have mentioned how they considered leaving town for the convention.  Employers have encouraged their employees to work in other offices or at home, apparently.  But all this running makes no sense to me – Boston looks great.

For this one splendid week, construction in this city has slowed or even come to a complete halt.  I’ve really appreciated reading positive articles in the Globe about last-minute labor contract deals struck by the Mayor, and about Boston’s eagerness to host the conference.

A big change has been in the subways.  The just look cleaner.  And finally the MBTA decided to post helpful new signs in each subway station to maneuver the area.  The airport has signs welcoming everyone to the city, and Yahoo! had a booth were you could search the internet for free.  (I checked e-mail, of course.)

I just don’t understand why anyone would want to leave the city during this exciting time.  I wish I were involved in the convention simply to be a good host and have a great time showing off the city.