Gyroscopic Investing

[align=center][/align]

Both presidential candidates took the night off (sort of) from campaigning to attend the annual Al Smith charity dinner held in New York. The event is sponsored by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York, raising millions for Catholic Charities, and regularly attracts the 'A list' of New York politicians and high society figures. In presidential election years it has become a tradition for the nominees of both parties to appear at the dinner and deliver usually humorous remarks to the crowd. Over the years the dinner has attracted its share of luminaries including Sir Winston Churchill. It also has gained a measure of fame as one of the last remaining society functions with a formal (white tie) dress code.

See here for their speeches...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kSznL29JyhQ
and...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S6g2YkTAYQ4

Reub wrote: I thought that Romney won.

They both had me laughing, but Romney's speech was hilarious.

I also thought Romney won. Obama doesn't really have the gift for this kind of speech. But hands down the best speech I ever heard at the Al was McCain's back in '08. He brought the house down.

McCain's speech at the Al...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Goaj5V4tZoc

Neither of these men are really born comedians, but man is Obama ever lousy at it. Poor guy.

I thought that was much better than the debates.

It was like a couple of actors dropping character for the evening.

We also thought it was much better than the debates.  Romney got his point across in a clear, very funny, entertaining way.  But, then again, one may have to be up on the political shenanigans and rhetoric to "get it" on a lot of the one-liners.  My spouse and I were thigh slapping laughing at some of Romney's zingers.  We though Obama came across as arrogant in his speech, but some of it was slightly funny.  We also thought the audience laughter was a good gage of the speeches.  We would really liked to have seen Obama's face and body language during Romney's speech ... he was likely seething.  All in all, this was a side of Romney we had not seen before; wish he would show more of his funny side on the campaign trail.