The third and final debate is tonight at 9pm EST. A few topics to consider in this open thread is what is missing from tonight's topics:
So two-thirds of the debate will be about the Greater Middle East. Two-thirds. Schieffer has generously allowed that China and Tomorrowland the entire Pacific Rim should get fifteen minutes. Here are the following areas and topics that apparently won't be discussed:
1) The eurozone crisis
2) Latin America
3) Russia
4) Africa
5) Foreign economic policy
6) India
7) North KoreaNow I get that some of these topics won't come up in a foreign policy debate that lasts only 90 minutes. But I'm also thinking that maybe, just maybe, it would be a better foreign policy debate if they actually talked about, you know, SOMETHING OTHER THAN THE MIDDLE EAST!!!!!!
I'm not saying the Middle East isn't important — we have lost blood and treasure there, some of it very recently. But I simply do not believe that the region is so important that it should occupy 66.7% of a foreign policy debate.
And you gotta love Reason's drinking game for tonight:
Start with a robust pregame chug for all the foreign policy issues that won’t be discussed: Democracy and development in Africa, the future of Russia, the Eurozone crisis, Greece and austerity budgets, debt and monetary policy in Japan.
And then t
ake a drink if:
Obama claims he ended the war in Iraq.
Romney fails to note that he didn’t.
Obama mumbles something vaguely incoherent about Afghanistan.
Romney mumbles something vaguely incoherent about Afghanistan.
Obama talks up sanctions on Iran.
Romney says those sanctions are not strong enough, but won’t say what action(s) would be.
Either candidate attempts to provide a detailed assessment of Iran’s nuclear program.
Romney once again botches his criticism of the Obama administration’s Benghazi blunders.
Obama defends his administration’s days-long insistence that the attacks were provoked by a YouTube video critical of Islam.
Romney promises to brand China a currency manipulator.
Obama declares that America must outcompete the rest of the world.
Romney, like just about every presidential candidate for the last few decades, pledges to achieve North American energy independence by 2020, but does not promise to discover unicorns, which is equally likely.
Obama says he wants to end subsidies to big oil without mentioning that he wants to plow those subsidies right back into dubious green energy projects.
Romney accuses Obama of having gone on an apology tour.
Anyone uses the words “mission accomplished.”
Anyone uses the words “brought to justice.”
Anyone mispronounces the name of a foreign country or city. Double shot if they pause to slowly correct themselves.
Anyone, including the moderator, gets mixed up about which war he’s talking about.Special rules:
Take one drink the first time President Obama mentions Osama bin Laden. Take two drinks the second time. And three drinks the third. Keep increasing the number of drinks accordingly each time he mentions him. And so on and so forth, so on the sixth time President Obama mentions bin Laden, you should take six drinks.
Buy a truck full of tequila, drive straight to Mexico, and open a bar under an assumed name if Romney responds to any of Obama’s bin Laden mentions by saying “you didn’t build that.”
Anyone got another one to add to this list?

