I generally don't pay much attention to political conventions. I view them as preaching to the choir, an opportunity for the faithful to gather and stroke each other and, to paraphrase, "an orgy of sound and fury signifying little".

But I must admit that, to me, developments over the past ten days have lent an importance to the Presidential race far outdistancing the usual impact of most past Democratic and Republican National Conventions.

I refer, of course, to the selection of Sarah Palin as the Republican Vice-Presidential nominee.

Before the conventions I was reasonably certain as to whom my Presidential vote would go, but certainly this new wrinkle has made a great difference in the way that I perceive the election contests.

Initially, I was surprised at the instant, vicious, unfounded attacks launched at Gov. Palin. Many of the accusations, although immediately and eagerly reported by liberal portions of the media, were quickly refuted and reluctant retractions issued. However, as the days passed even more extreme attempts to discredit her have flooded the internet and other news outlets.

If choosing this particular individual was a planned move to inject more life into the political process, then I believe that the planners have succeeded beyond their most ambitious expectations.

Not since Robert Bork and Clarence Thomas were nominated to the Supreme Court can I remember such a frantic character assassination campaign by the left. Again, somewhat surprising considering the efforts made to portray the woman as a "nobody" or an inexperienced "hick" from a backwoods state (remind anyone of the charges leveled against a certain Arkansas Governor?)

Then again, this particular nominee was recently described as a "polished politician" by Vice-Presidential aspirant Sen. Joe Biden and she does not appear reticent about claiming center stage and returning fire against those who attack and attempt to demean her. The content of her speeches seems to have struck a resounding chord with a significant portion of the electorate.

Gov. Palin is no helpless, ill-prepared shrinking violet and it seems obvious that the left is frantic over what to do about this very visible perceived threat to their plans to rule America. I would suggest that their hasty and ill-conceived smear campaign will win them little, if any ground.

Ideally, political campaigns would feature the presentation of ideas and potential solutions to the problems confronting our country. Pointing out differences in the theory and application of these concepts and the ability of the candidates to lead in their implementation is not only acceptable but necessary to help voters make their decisions.

"The politics of personal destruction" seems to me to be an unnecessary distraction. Unfortunately, this particular tactic is extremely subjective in description and is often regarded by members of both parties as easily justifiable.

There is now a significant and visible difference between the political philosophies of the two sets of candidates vying for the leadership of the nation.

All of this might just be enough to convince me to watch the upcoming debates between Presidential and Vice-Presidential candidates.

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