I watched most of the Republican debate last night, though I admit to nodding off towards the end. I also watched TV, mostly CNN, this morning to see how people were reacting. Here are a few immediate(therefore suspect, but I hope passably and decently considered)reactions of mine–

Vivek Ramaswamy–I praised his intelligence and articulation about a month or so ago. I am glad I never praised anything else about him and I don’t think I ever shall. Wasting his potential articulateness and his intelligence, he has chosen to go for making noise, being the loudest, most intrusive and obnoxious of the candidates. He might even make Trump look like a gentleman. He has no restraint and is very short on honesty or common sense or both If he actually believes his incredulous “inside job” stuff, then he’s lacking in sense. If he is doing it because he thinks a lot of ignorant fanatics will follow him, he’s just demagoging it. Given the depths of self-deception and insidious twisting of truth the human mind is capable of, it is not impossible that he’s doing a bit of both. His only significant influence will be as a spoiler and he may fall short of spoiling very much. I hope that is the case.

Ron Disantis is rising a bit in the polls and seems to be learning some of the rules of the game. From a strictly technical point of view he did better last night, mostly getting his facts straight(mostly!!)and largely keeping his voice down and not shouting, except when losing his temper with Nikki Halley. He still has personality issues and this difficulty will be hard,–perhaps impossible–to fix. He just seems unsympathetic to me. I also dislike most of what he says, which I find largely warmed over far right BS, possibly distilled a bit to make him sound less like Trump.

Nikki Halley is the most impressive of the Republicans who actually have a chance of getting the nomination. Well rehearsed and well groomed, she is photogenic and articulate and, very importantly, she is capable of expressing outrage(Disantis and Ramaswarmy gave her plenty of reason)without sounding shrill, hysterical and out of control. Although I disagree with her on a lot of issues, she at least seems to offer some respect to those who differ from her and to be willing to seek compromise. She also has a good sense of international issues and US commitments abroad. She could be a tough candidate to beat, particularly if she was wise in her choice of a running mate.

Chris Christie is my pick of the lot and the one(well, maybe Vivek too, I guess) who clearly has no chance of being nominated. The ONLY one on stage who was ready to launch an out and out attack on Trump and tell the whole truth about the former President, I though he was very effective. He also did a good job, both morally and technically, of defending Nikki from some of Ramaswamy’s more goofy sounding and insulting remarks. He managed, in an era of assumed sexual equality, to look like a old-fashioned gentleman defending a wronged lady, but doing so without demeaning her. Ramaswamy likely made this easier by behaving like such a jerk.

Chris is at 2% of the Republican voters surveyed, which makes him essentially tied with Ramaswamy. But before jumping to conclusions, consider this. Ramaswamy really wants to be President. He apparently has deluded himself into thinking he has a chance now. And his 2% is among the people he needs, people who will be likely to vote in the Republican primaries. With Chris it is different. He has no chance of becoming President this election and he knows it. His only desire is to thwart Trump. So it’s more important how he polls among the larger population. A higher reading there would enhance his prestige among the public and ought to have some effect upon the party. Furthermore, he IS polling well in New Hampshire as is Halley; NH is the only state I know of so far which has chosen to, for the moment at least, favor the two unarguably sane and intelligent Republican candidates. How Chris does in later polls which might show the public’s taste at considerable variance from MAGA Republicans could be very important. Also, if he should win in NH he might be on his way–not to the White House, but to an honorable position as the man who kept Trump out of it.

OK, enough politics for the moment. You may have noticed a show entitled “Steve Lawrence and Edie Gorme–My Mom and Dad” which has played on PBS recently. I think it’s a one timer, not part of a series. I haven’t seen it yet but I’ve got it on the DVR and certainly look forward to seeing it. If you would look at my first blog, more than a year and a half ago, you will find them mentioned.

Steve and Edie were popular for years, but I think of them as coming mainly in that time when old fashioned Great American Songbook -type pop music was being driven out by rock. I don’t hate rock, incidentally, I actually like some of it quite well. But I loved the old, more adult seeming(to me, anyway)music which preceded it, particularly when, as with Steve and Edie, it bore some relation to the slower, more romantic part of jazz, what I like to call “night club jazz.” It appears the show will be repeated several times in the near future, so check your local PBS station for details. You won’t regret it–I hope.

Then there’s Ramesh Ponnuru, editor of the National Review. He recently gave me a good reason to make one more comment here and to combine politics and music. On a recent(the most recent)version of “Face the Nation,” the moderator asked for comments about the remarkable ongoing career of the Rolling Stones. The other three participants were at least somewhat praising of them, but not Mr Ponnuru.

Pursuing a version of conservatism which I think might have irked William F Buckley,Jr (I once admired him and still do in ways), Ponnuru was both dismissive and contemptuous. He had a number of disparaging remarks about the RS one of which included the words “moral turpitude” with which he was charging them–decades of it.

Well, OK–I don’t agree with everything the Stones have said or done or stood for–they clearly have their lackings. But that’s just part of the story–and also there’s the music. They have never been one of my favorite groups, but they have produced some good songs–“Angie,” the slow, heart-breaking love song with the gorgeous piano solo is my favorite. Then there’s “Ruby Tuesday” about the girl who just “comes and goes.”–and several others. There’s also the fact that in their 80’s they’re still out there looking and acting like rock stars at least on stage.

It seems for both the music and the spirit they deserve credit. A bunch of guys that age with the moxie, energy and will to do what they do just about have to be admired in my opinion. And it seems some generosity might be in order here. So, Mr Ponnuru, I suggest that for your own mind and persona and even more for the reputation of your magazine and the conservative philosophy, you might want to think this over again. If you change your mind, well, say so–and if you don’t, well, that’s OK too–your choice. Just remember that politics and morality, life and art, are all part of the same deal–being human and living in the world. Oh, yes, and thanks for listening.