All Those Political Attack Ads

We don't have a TV, but I got exposed to the current state of affairs by watching Phillies games with friends during the NLCS. The onslaught of political ads was a little bit nauseating. The Inky reports:

"G. Terry Madonna, director of the Center for Politics and Public Affairs at Franklin and Marshall College, said he had no doubt 'that the commercials are more negative and that there are more of them than we've seen in maybe forever here.'

With a U.S. Senate seat, the governor's mansion and several key U.S. House seats in play, Madonna said, 'there is probably more being spent on TV in Pennsylvania in this cycle than even in the presidential elections.'"

Of course, it seems like we see this story nearly every cycle: More money, and more negative attacks. These stories were being written back in 1994, when the Gingrich Republicans first took Congress. I have no doubt they were being written decades before that. It's annoying -- I'm grateful we don't have a TV -- but it's not new.