Cook vs. Archuleta

First, let me apologize for subscribing to this rather horrible phenomenon of the American public allowing the media to shove whatever they want at us and then getting us to vote more avidly for our favorite manufactured pop star than we do for our president. It is sad (but, hey, I guess it may be true that we actually do have more say as to what pop star we choose than we do with the candidates the parties shove at us). However, I have the small point of pride in that I've never actually voted for any manufactured pop star, and I have voted in all presidential elections since I turned 18. (Oh, how embarrassed I am to admit to having voted for Bush in 2000.) Okay, having made my disclaimer, I will now indulge in this rather horrific example of American priorities. Wow, how biased was Simon (isn't it weird how the voters kinda do what Simon tells them---it's almost, but not quite, as bad as how the parties dictate our candidates, at least I often agree with Simon)? I will say it was one of Archuleta's best nights and not Cook's best night. Still, I found Cook far more interesting, as always---I think mediocre Cook is better than Archuleta at his best. I thought Cook did well with "I Still Haven't Found what I'm Looking For"---Bono's tough competition though. "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" is, in my opinion, a far inferior song, but I thought it was one of Archuleta's better performances. As for the lame Idol songs on the second round, I can't understand the praise for Archuleta over Cook on that one---they were both kinda lame songs, but I thought Cook did better with his and was more entertaining at least. Last songs, Archuleta reuses "Imagine" and does well, though I don't care for how he pops everything up so much. Cook's song was not as amazing as some he's done in the past, but I liked him trying something new, and I found his performance at least as good as Archuleta's. Maybe Cook had already set the bar so much higher than Archuleta, he had more trouble living up to past performances. Anyway, clearly Idol (Simon at least) was stacking the deck in Archuleta's favor, plus he's got all those prepubescent girls voting for him, so I guess he'll likely win, but I think Cook will end up with the better career either way. Cook is the first Idol for whom I've actually been tempted to take the trouble of voting because I enjoy his performances so much. He's the first Idol I'm interested in following beyond the show. All that being said, Archuleta seems like a sweet kid with a lovely voice, though his dorkiness is sometimes extreme, but hey, I like dorks.