It’s that time of year again! The grass is crunchy, the leaves are changing, and the temperature is dropping. This all can only mean one thing. It’s debate time! That’s right. The first presidential debate happened Wednesday, October 3^rd. Millions of people tuned in on a TV, streamed the debate online, or even turned on the radio to watch and/or listen to Barack Obama and Mitt Romney duke it out for presidency. Of course, everyone has different opinions on how the debate went. Olivia Hockenbroch (2015) and Stephen Nolan (2014) represent different sides to the debate, but they are both very valuable to forming your own opinions!

Q: Did you watch the debate?

Olivia: Yes, I did! I watched the entire debate.

Stephen: Yes, I watched it.

Q: Why did you watch?

O: I wanted to watch how the candidates interact in the presence of one another. It helps me get more of a feel of each of their personalities and how they are around others.

S: I watched the debate because hundreds of thousands of soldiers and politicians fought so I could have the right to vote. My only hesitation is that I may not be informed enough to make a good decision, so I watched the debate to get a better idea of what is going on. However, I realize that a lot of what these guys say is B.S., so I am not entirely sure I am better off.

Q: Who do you think won?

O: I believe Barack Obama did, but I’m not entirely sure. To me, this means that I need to hear more from both of them. I’m leaning more towards Obama, though.

S: I don’t think anyone “won,” partially because they couldn’t agree on facts yet alone speculative policies and predictions. I think Romney won back some respect more than Obama did, so I guess Mitt “won.”

-Nikki Halstead ’15 Juniata Online Journalist