I was following you pretty well until you tossed this bit in. There is a (subtle) implication in your tone that the Democrats are never guilty of such tactics. We all need to be willing to acknowledge that both parties have been doing this for decades, and it needs to stop. FROM BOTH SIDES.
Is McCain more guilty of it this time? Absolutely. And it will cost him the election. But Obama is no saint. I haven't heard him denounce the tactics employed by the "anchors" on MSNBC. And, previous Democrat AND Republican campaigns have been just as dirty as anything McCain has done this time.
The swift boat stuff, the Willie Horton, the infamous Jesse Helms "white hands" ad, etc. a long line of vile, hate-filled personal smears. All the dirty tricks the Lee Atwaters of the world helped to usher in.
I certainly don't think the Dems, or any politicians for that matter, are saints. lol. But I can't recall any ad or statement from the Democratic campaign implying McCain is a pedophile, terrorist, drug addict, hates America, "not one of us" or whathaveyou. Have the anchors on MSNBC said such lies about McCain's character? examples? I'm not saying you're wrong, but simply stating or believing that both sides conduct equally dirty campaigns doesn't make it so.
If I heard Obama or Biden say such disgusting personal, untrue things about McCain, I'd denounce them also. If you'd like to point about the personal lies the Dems have told about McCain's character then be my guest. I've only heard Obama and Biden say good things about McCain as a American and a war hero and attack the man's judgment and record and not the man himself. I'm glad McCain finally came out and defended Obama and called him a good man, which he was booed for by frightened, angry, misinformed supporters.
It seems like every time one points out how underhanded and vile one side is behaving, the retort is "well, the other guys are saying it also". That comes across as a bit juvenile and childish to me, as if it condones bad behavior if others do it too. As teachers and parents point out to children making that argument, "I'm not talking about what Jimmy down the street does, I'm talking about
your behavior."
sorry if it came across otherwise. Should've thrown in more wookies or bananas. :chew 
