It was so bloodless that every pro-lifer should be insulted by it.

I'm not of the persuasion that conservatives by definition have nothing to add to the political discourse. My Dutch citizenship regularly puts me in a position where I get to defend such world premieres as euthanasia, gay weddings, legal use of drugs and abortion, but the truth is that although I'm in favor of all the above, I understand and sometimes even share ethical concerns of (religious) conservatives about the protection of life. Similarly, I've heard conservatives make eloquent cases about the role of government in society and other such issues.

But where Obama presents a vision, the Republicans present old slogans and wisecracks, and McCain's speech was the worst even in that category. They tried to satisfy everybody at this convention and the result is the opposite. The big difference was that the Dems gave the stage to the old guard for quite a bit, and then moved on. The Repubs tried to keep the old guard out, only allowed Bush by satellite, and then tried to stay friends with them. This never works, and it will at least take a full presidential cycle before they've cleaned up their mess. I think that when they've lost, it'll be internal warfare, if that hasn't already started yet.