I've been watching the convention in New York this week. A couple of comments I've heard have stuck with me and made a lot of sense.

One person, on commenting about the appearance and speech by the First Lady and her daughters, observed it was out of place at the convention.

I heartily agreed.

As the commentator noted, we (the U.S.) are not a monarchy. The people in the White House aren't royalty. When we as a nation elect a chief executive, we are not electing a first family, it's just not an issue and somehow over the last decade or so, candidates families have been trotted out in front of the media.

I don't know anyone who brings their wife or kids on a job interview and running this country is indeed a job, the campaign is just our citizenry's interview process.

The other comment was by John McCain. He observed sitting with either Tim Russert, Sean Hannity or Larry King there will be a time after the election when members of both parties will have to work together to conduct the business of government. It will be all the harder to do that when rhetoric descends and becomes downright insulting. This is something both parties have been guilty of this year and I for one wish it would stop.

Then thinking about it, I imagine it just shows how the whole election process in this country has been transformed over the last three decades.