OK, I'm a bit behind here, but just watched Howard Dean from last night.

Has the guy been medicated? Wooden was the word that kept coming to mind, but then he ended with his trademark "You have the power, You have the power, You have the power" rant, except that it wasn't a rant. He just recited it, as if he were reading lines in a foreign language where the meaning meant nothing to him.

Interesting to look back on how he brought such life to those words, because he was caught up in the frenzy where he really seemed to believe it. It felt like a revolution, and he was leading it, and possibilities were electric. Now they were just sad words that must have stung: You didn't have the power after all. Or did you?--but used it to reject me.

Every ounce of fire has gone out of that man. I'm sure he'll get it back one day, but he was terribly sad to watch tonight. Last night, for the rest of you.

Why did he do it, I wonder. Couldn't he just have politely refused -- I'm sure they could have used the airtime. No, I guess not. That would have looked like a snub. But this. This was like watching a dead man walking.

Huh. I just realized, I normally despise political conventions, this is the first I ever recall enjoying. But this was the first truly sad note of the proceedings. I feel just awful for the guy.

Update: Larry King's first reaction, "A rousing speach from Howard Dean." Is he on drugs? How deep is his head buried up his ass?