It's like, gag me

It's the smell of skunk spray immediately after ejection - sickly sweet.

What is that word?

Smarmy. "Revealing or marked by a smug, ingratiating, or false earnestness...."

Yay, that's it.

The videos at the Democratic and Republican National Conventions are just plain smarmy. Obama's was OK, but Clinton's? Lord. I didn't see Palin's, but McCain's was out of control. That irritating movie-announcer-guy narrator. I can't take it seriously. And the background music! Bleck.

It's all so... so... American. A pep rally. A tribe of too-earnest cheerleaders yanking on your heart strings. An after-school special (remember those?) - all cheery, cheesy, sappy, and oh-so-serious. Just like that skunk spray; so sweet it's nauseating.

I don't know why they bother me so much. The word that springs to mind is propaganda: "Ideas, facts, or allegations spread deliberately to further one's cause." Put some patriotic music behind some touching pictures, tell the story as if it's a 1940's news film and it all becomes more important, more emotional, more convincing.

Call me a cynic, but I'm sorry, it doesn't work for me. Bring on the hype and I run the other way.

Just the facts, ma'am, just the facts...