There are, of course, many valid criticism that can be made about the Romney/Ryan ticket. The men are unsuitable for the position of President and Vice-President in myriad ways: Philosophically, ethically, in terms of policy, in terms of character ...
But they have the power to make white men feel like men again.
And Barack Obama does not.
Do you know how it feels to be a straight white man in America?
Once upon a time -- in the memory of many voters -- it felt damned good.
Your house was your castle. Your job was your domain. Your wife was your chattel. Your children, your objects of possession.
This was good stuff. Damned good stuff.
If you were a straight white man, you could be proud to be an American.
I happen to be a homo type person, so not all of this applies to me. But I sometimes reflect on what it means to be a white male in America. And I am awed by it. I move in a cloud of unearned entitlement -- it's -- it's hard not to be amazed by it. And I know that, as part of the LGBT community, I'm only catching a fraction of the glory that is showered on straight white men.
Of course, everybody gots problems.
And it is just as hard -- harder maybe -- for the "haves" to recognize luck and unearned privilege. We think we got where we are because we earned it, because we worked hard ... Because in America, everyone gets the same chances, right? If you are homeless, or hungry, or poor, it's because you deserve it.
Except when it's us -- then it's someone else's fault -- the black single mother, the illegal Mexican immigrant.
And, granted, some of the Great White Glory is and always was a myth.
But that doesn't keep it from being a powerful one.
And the fact is that the power, the privilege and entitlement of the straight white male has receded in recent years, largely as competition from other groups has eroded their monopoly on power.
There are millions of angry white guys -- or despondent ones -- who are looking for someone to restore them to what they think they once had.
Or, maybe as they think of it, what they deserve.
I've read a lot of critiques of the Romney/Ryan ticket already today. We've taken them down on their political positions, their philosophy, their character.
But I don't know if there is a way to take them down on what's the most potent weapon in their arsenal:
That they can make straight white men feel like men again.