Published: July 19, 2008 09:51 am         

Other View: Forget election trivialities

It's hard not to be put off by the way so many trivialities are given prominence during an election year. Taken to extremes, such focus is harmful, because it elevates those trivialities to major issues at the expense of real ones.

The most recent example hitting the airwaves? The Rev. Jesse Jackson's comments about presidential hopeful Barack Obama.

Jackson shot his mouth off -- shocking, we know -- (and) made a crude statement about what he'd like to do with the senator's privates ...

Here's all the analysis this merits: Jackson said something not appropriate in polite conversation ...

Here's the analysis it's getting: Has Obama changed since cinching the Democratic nomination? Is he just a politician? What about race in his campaign?

The answer to the first two questions is a resounding "Duh." The other one has been asked since Day 1 of his candidacy, and it's been constant ...

Montrose (Colo.) Daily Press