The Mad Rants of an Unconventional Soccer Mom

Good God! I just checked all the counties that have reported in. The red counties are reported in with at 100%. The blue counties of Lake, Vermillion, and Porter are still reporting in. Barack is only 6,000 votes behind...I think Indiana will go BLUE!!!

Polls start closing in Indiana in ten minutes.  Here is how I think the election will play out:  Obama will win all states won by John Kerry in 2004, in addition to Iowa, New Mexico, Colorado, Ohio, Virginia, Nevada, Florida, and North Carolina, while narrowly losing Missouri and Indiana.  He can still pull off wins in the Hoosier state, but I'm not going to hold my breath.  I'm guessing that the wins will translate into a popular vote win of about 6%. 

For the Senate races I think that the Dem will come up just short of their goal of 60 seats, picking up eight.  I think they will pick up Virginia, New Mexico, New Hampshire, Alaska, Colorado, Oregon, North Carolina and (cross my fingers) Al Franken in Minnesota.  There's also a very good chance that there will be a December special election in Georgia, where a runoff election is held in the event that no candidate receives 50 percent plus one of the vote.

In the House I'm sure that the Dems will make more big gains.  We'll end up with more than a 100 seat majority. 

Time will tell!!!

I have waited such a long time for this day. I made calls.  I canvassed. I donated time and money.  I argued my case for an Obama presidency to friends and family.  I fought back against smears.  I waited in line for two hours on a Saturday morning in Indiana to cast my vote...which is nothing.  Lines last night in Florida were eight hours long.  I would have stood there througout the night if need be.  It's worth a wait in line to change the world.

By the end of this day, we should know who our next president is. Hopefully our long, long national nightmare is coming to an end.

I do have two pieces of advice for tonight if you are waitching any coverage.  Number One: any time one of the pundants mention an exit poll stick your fingers in your ears and scream la,la,la as loud as possible.  The exit polling today will be wrong. It will reflect who is voting today, but not reflect the totality of the race.  Many people voted early.  I am sure they have thought of ways to deal with that, but I have little faith in it after 2004.  Number two:   watch when voting ends in Georgia, Indiana and Virginia. If Barack wins any of the three, he could be on his way to a big victory.  My prediction is that he will win Virginia.  I think Georgia would be a stretch, but if he can pull off a win in Indiana...that would be icing on the cake for me!  Without these eastern states McCain doesn't really have a chance since Barack has clear leads in the red states of Colorado, New Mexico, Iowa and Nevada.   
 

Kudos to the law enforcement for putting a stop to these psychos before anyone was hurt.

WASHINGTON — Two white supremacists allegedly plotted to go on a national killing spree, shooting and decapitating black people and ultimately targeting Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama, federal authorities said Monday.

In all, the two men whom officials described as neo-Nazi skinheads planned to kill 88 people _ 14 by beheading, according to documents unsealed in U.S. District Court in Jackson, TN. The numbers 88 and 14 are symbolic in the white supremacist community.

It kills me that these people exist at all. According to Kenneth, who knows way too much about Nazis, 14 represents the 14 words written by David Lane: "We must secure the existence of our people and a future for white children." I guess it is the code they live by. 88 means Heil Hitler -- H is the 8th letter in the alphabet.

And if this isn't all sick enough:

Jim Cavanaugh, special agent in charge of the Nashville ATF field office, said the two men sought to go on a national killing spree that included an unnamed African-American school, with Obama as their final target.

These sick assholes wanted to decapitate children for being black! How does anyone hate this much? There is no good in these people. They are pure evil. And even though their plot was foiled, I still kind of want them to fry. It's the rare crimes like this that make me keep from demanding the death penalty be banned altogether.

I really don't know how the Obama family does it. Especially Michelle. I would be spending my day paralyzed with fear that I would lose my husband and the father of my children to some nutjob. It's remarkable that when she was asked about it during the primaries she said: "You can't make decisions based on fear and the possibility of what might happen." They are simply amazing people.

The end of the Bush era will soon be here.  If you would like to give him a piece of your mind, check this out.  Some of them are really hilarious.

"If we don't fight hard enough for the things we stand for, at some point we have to recognize that we don't really stand for them."

Paul David Wellstone

He was a great man who believed in the power of ordinary individuals.  His measuring stick was not the poll numbers, or the editorial pages, or the political pudits blathering away on tv -- it was the farmers, the students, the seniors, the people of this country.  He fought hard for what he believed in -- the environment, labor, and health care.  He made the fight for rights of victims of domestic abuse and the mentally ill the focus of his career.

I think, in large part because of Paul, that it is easier to be a liberal today, to be a progressive, to be proud. But back when Paul was fighting against Bush Senior over the Gulf War and then Junior over the latest clusterf#&@, it wasn't. Lliberalism was a dirty word and liberalism in defense of peace was mocked as unpatriotic and treasonous.  The crys against liberalism are still there but, today they are faint.

I know he would have been so proud of the campaign that Barack has run and I'm sure he would have been one of his loudest and proudest of his supporters.  I can just picture him touring around Minnesota in his green bus.  But unfortunately, he died just 11 days before election day in a crucial race to maintain Democratic control of the Senate in 2002.   In a fair world, today we'd be watching Paul Wellstone head towards his fourth term in the U.S. Senate.  What I can only hope for now is that Al Frankin will absolutely crush Norm Coleman.

And man, did it feel great! 

HONOLULU – Senator Barack Obama slowly walked up the steps of his campaign plane here on Friday evening, his suit coat slung over his shoulder, as he concluded his one-day visit home to Hawaii.

From touch-down on Thursday to take off on Friday, Mr. Obama spent nearly 22 hours on the ground in Honolulu visiting his ailing grandmother, Madelyn Dunham. He did not say how Mrs. Dunham was feeling and campaign aides did not disclose her condition, but he believes this could be his last time seeing her.

How unbelievably difficult it must be to say goodbye to a loved one, knowing you will probably not see them alive again. My heart goes out to him.

In "Dreams from My Father," Barack wrote how his grandfather was a dreamer and how it was “Toot”, his grandmother, who gave him his grounding. It was Toot that was practical enough to support the family by working her way up from secretary to vice president at a local bank. In his speeches he credits her with raising him to be the man he is now and he often sights her as an example of a strong woman succeeding through intelligence and determination. She really is a remarkable woman if you think about what she accomplished.

I hope that on Novemeber 4th Barack is able to dedicate a towering triumph to her. I hope she can hold on long enough to see the grandson she raised by sworn in as President of the United States.

And one finally thought:  Do you remember when McCain fake "suspended" his campaign for a selfish, dishonest political stunt?  Now Barack has been accused of fake suspending his campaign. I would like to point out that what Barack did was prioritize and delegate. These are two very Presidential characteristics. What Barack did was out of genuine love and grief, not a stunt. The contrast is overwhelming.

Can it really happen?  Can Indiana turn blue?  35,000 Hoosiers greeted Barack this morning in Indianapolis.  That's a huge crowd for a Thursday morning in a "red" state!  There were also two new polls out today showing Barack with nice leads in the state.

I wish I could have been there.  How awesome!  It will be icing on the cake if he can pull off a win here, because I never really thought it was possible.  I've done canvassing here, and it was really tough and depressing.  There are still a lot of bigots in this state.  Hopefully they will be outnumbered at the polls.

But let's not think about that!  Let's think happy thought!  Here's a really heart-warming story out of Evansville that should make anyone proud.  I can't wait until I get to vote on Saturday!

Trying to poison our minds with more incendiary rhetoric...

Doesn't he make the McBush campaign look so small and so petty with their chanrges of terrorism and communism? McBush played right into a closing argument that ties together the original theme of Obama's campaign. The whole thing almost seems orchestrated.  This is the theme that launched his presidential campaign and some of the words that caused me to support Obama since last summer and throughout the primaries.

He shifted to policy speeches as Americans looked more closely. But, he also predicted that McBush would attack and divide, even to the point of making fun of his name.

Now with less than 2 weeks to go the McBush campaign in full-bore erratic divisive mode and Obama goes back to HOPE! Not a hope in red states or blue states, but in the UNITED States.

What a beautiful campaign, and what a great feeling it is to know that Barack Obama will be our President after the 4th.

During Powell’s endorsement on MTP this morning, he ended it very powerfully by the dismantling of McBush's "He's not an Arab... He's a Decent Man” and the "Obama is a Muslim" memes being spread by the right. He told the story of a young soldier named Kareem Rashad Sultan Khan. Kareem was of the Muslim faith.  Kareem died in action for this country in Iraq on Aug. 6, 2007. He is buried in Arlington National Cemetery.

"Is there something wrong with being Muslim in America? No, that's not America," he said.

"He was 14 years old at the time of 9/11, and he waited until he could go serve his country, and he gave his life," Mr. Powell said. "Now, we have got to stop polarizing ourselves in this way."

And he finally says what every decent American should be saying  - "So what if Obama was a Muslim" and he goes on to tell the story of this heartbreaking photo of Specialist Khan's mother at his grave:


The highly charged rhetoric being spewed by the right must stop. The way McBush and Wolf Slayer are constantly trying to tie Obama to terrorism and Islam is once again an affront to all Muslim Americans. We saw this type of fear and backlash just after 9/11. We are seeing it again with the McCarthy-like invocations of Michele Bachmann. I challenge these repulsive, incendiary bigots to look this grieving mother in the face and tell her that her son was anti-American because of his faith.

We must set a new tone in this country. We must not allow the fringe to keep demonizing anyone of a different race or culture. Hell! They even demonize intelligence and educatation. They prop up Joe-the-Dumb-Ass-Phony-Plumber as a national hero when this real hero nobly sacrificed everything for his country.  Who would you rather represent what's great about this country?  The idiot who had made himself a houshold name by whining about having to make even the most modest contributions to this society or the young man who paid the ultimate sacrifice to this country before his 20th birthday?

Thank you Specialist Khan for your service.  May you rest in peace.

Please go and read more about this All-American patroit here.

Colin Powell has just endorsed Barack. It was a well thought out, moving and articulate endorsement. His slap down of McBush was amazing; just the right amount of respect and disdain. I think this will be absolutely devastating for McBush. A Republican crossover with the popularity and credibility (deserved or not) of Powell completely destroys his closing argument against Barack that he is unsafe and un-American…especially among independents and veterans. It will be interesting to see the impact of this over the next couple of news cycles.



I’m not really a fan of Powell after his performance at the UN, but I have to give him much credit for endorsing, as surely it would have been easier to just sit this one out. He has now placed himself in the crossfire of people running the most vitriolic campaign in decades, who will instantly accuse Powell of endorsing merely because both he and Barack are black. I’m sure he just went from revered general to a "colored guy" endorsing another "n----r" in 60 seconds.

Do we simply value wealth, or do we value the work that creates it?

Senator Barack Obama, October 18, 2008

"There was the feel of a political world turned upside down on Saturday as Sen. John McCain found himself defending North Carolina and Virginia, while Sen. Barack Obama was greeted by huge crowds in Missouri, which Republicans had also considered safe just months ago," the New York Times reports.

Over 100,000 people welcomed Barck in the red state of Missouri! Amazing! It was Barack's largest US crowd. So many people with so much hope for a better future!

It's beyond clear that desperate McBush is willing to go anywhere and do anything to achieve his own selfish personal ambitions, even at the expense of his family:

ABC News has learned that Warren Tompkins, one of the strategists of then-Gov. George W. Bush's South Carolina campaign in 2000 -- which Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., blamed for his family being slimed -- is now a part of the McCain-Palin campaign team...

Tompkins, a protégé of Lee Atwater, has been dispatched to North Carolina to assess the state for the McCain-Palin campaign, Southern GOP strategists tell ABC News.....

The news of Tompkins being brought on board the McCain campaign brings to a total of three the number of GOP operatives McCain now is using despite the fact that he once held them responsible for the ugly campaign that contributed to his South Carolina primary defeat, a campaign in which McCain's wife Cindy was attacked for her past addiction to painkillers, and the McCains' adopted Bangladeshi daughter Bridget was targeted as his illegitimate black baby....

Eight years ago, of course, McCain was much chattier on the subject of these types of calls.

"A lot of phone calls were made by people who said we should be very ashamed about her, about the color of her skin," McCain told one interviewer. "Thousands and thousands of calls from people to voters saying 'You know the McCains have a black baby.' I believe that there is a special place in hell for people like those."

Apparently, that "special place in hell" is the John McCain for President campaign.

I walked in the door and Hardball was on. Wingnut extraordinaire Michelle Bachmann was spewing her usual hatred, but tonight she took it even farther. Farther then I have EVER heard before:



Can you believe that??? McCarthyism is back!!! This is very scary. Just BREATHTAKING. My stomach is all twisted in knots. She's dangerous and inciting violence. People like this and Palin are so desperate that they are willing to destroy this country. What's the definition of treason again? What constitutes a threat to the Country?

"What I would say is that the news media should do a penetrating expose and take a look. I wish they would. I wish the American media would take a great look at the views of the people in Congress and find out, are they pro-America or Anti-America? I think the American people would love to see an expose like that."

SHE WANTS A WITCH HUNT AGAINST THE LIBERAL MEMBERS OF CONGRESS! I am so tired of these asshats who subvert the Constitution, but call themselves patriots because they wear a flag on their lapel. I am so tired of these asshats that think that are the only ones who love this country and our troops because they stick a yellow magnet on their bumper! And the same thing goes for these un-Christ-like “Christians”. Just today I saw a bumper sticker that said JesUSAves. It is just ridiculous and infuriating what is done in the name of God and Country. None of these morons that spew hate and try to divide this country further have any idea of what it means to be a real American. And this woman IS the Anti-American.

"2/3 of the American people think McCain is an angry candidate, and for 90 minutes, he tried to convince the other third." -- Tom Daschle

That about sums up the debate tonight. McBush did himself no favors. He was seething, gritting his teeth, rolling his eyes and snorting. And guess what? People didn't like him very much.  All insta polls show that Obama won big time.  Even Fox News.

And there were some really bad moments for McBush that stood out to me:

• When speaking about the Supreme Court McBush said: "Senator Obama voted against Justice Breyer and Justice Roberts on the grounds that they didn't meet his ideological standards." Yeah...I don't think so. Breyer was appointed in '94.
• McBush said a couple of times that Palin knows more about the issue of autism than nearly anyone because her son has autism.  That's not correct.  Her son has Downs Syndrome.  And what evidence is there of that she would do anything at all to help families with special needs children?   Do you really thinks a McBush administration would help fund IDEA? Would they want to expand rights for special-education students to private schools? McBush also said they want to help find a cure. But how? The NIH budget has been slashed in the past eight years. Will McBush propose additional funding, particularly for autism or Down's research? My guess is he would not.
• McBush sarcastically paid tribute with snarky air quotes to "the eloquence of Senator Obama. He's for the "health" of mother. You know, that's been stretched by the pro-abortion movement in America to mean almost anything."  What a wanker! I mean really. Ridiculing an exception in a late-term abortion ban for the life of the mother? Doesn't that tell you everything you need to know about his views about women? I don't think it will go over well with women that he MOCKED and belittled the idea that some women are faced with very heart wrenching life and death choices.
• McBush said he would "encourage programs such as Teach for America and Troops to Teachers where people, after having served in the military, can go right to teaching and not have to take these examinations which -- or have the certification that some are required in some states." Did you get that? He wants to put teachers in my children's classrooms who have no training in education, which usually includes some training in how to handle children with special needs. This scares me. It's all I need is some former drill sergeant continually berating my sons to "look me in the eye when I talk to you." I've seen the type; they seem to coach a lot of kids' sports teams around here and it's not what the children in this country need. They need highly trained teachers and programs that are fully funded.
• And did anyone else catch McCain's remarks about 27 minutes into the debate??? He called JFK's assassination an "intervention"!!! WTF?? Nice code words!

I'm so glad in 20 days I won't have to listen to him again!

Hater of science and intellectuals...check!
Warmonger...check!
Hypocrite...check!
Power abuser...check!
Mean spirited...check!
"Christian"...check!
Evil...check!

This is the best October Suprise ever!:

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) -- A legislative committee investigating Gov. Sarah Palin of Alaska, the Republican vice presidential candidate, issued a report Friday night that found she unlawfully abused her authority by firing the state’s public safety commissioner.

***

"Governor Palin knowingly permitted a situation to continue where impermissible pressure was placed on several subordinates in order to advance a personal agenda, to wit: To get Trooper Michael Wooten fired," said the report, which was issued in Anchorage.

She really is Cheney in a skirt! What a smart pick McBush!  And by the way, this was a bipartisan report - 10 Republicans and 4 Dems.

Finding Number One

For the reasons explained in section IV of this report, I find that Governor Sarah Palin abused her power by violating Alaska Statute 39.52.110(a) of the Alaska Executive Branch Ethics Act. Alaska Statute 39.52.110(a) provides

The legislature reaffirms that each public officer holds office as a public trust, and any effort to benefit a personal or financial interest through official action is a violation of that trust.

What are the chances that McBush will show his maverickness by casting the wicked, no good, politics as usual Wolf Slayer off his ticket?  He needs to be hit hard for his judgement or rather...lack of judgement.  This has got to be the worse VP pick ever!

What the hell has happened to my country? These people are inciting hatred and violence against a candidate for the presidency for the United States. God forbid some right wing nutjob gets any stupid ideas from Wolf Slayer. But if the worst should happen, she and McBush will have blood on their hands. If their over-the-top crap gets Obama killed, and his wife and kids are grieving in full view of the public, I wonder if they'll finally realize what 20 years of Limbaugh and Hannity and Coulter has wrought. My guess is probably not.

The choice in this election could not be more different. One campaign is attacking the policies of the other side while at the same time offering positive solutions for how we can work together and bring about change. The other side is using McCarthy style attacks on the character of their opponents, inciting their crowds in the worst way possible, and offering no real solutions. It's the ultimate battle of hope vs. hate. And I prayer that for the good of this country that hope trumps fear and hate this time.

"When you try to lead the people with the use of ignorance and fear, you only lead the ignorant and fearful."

This is just depressing. I really hope Obama funds public education properly because this country sure needs it:


I am truly fearful and ANGRY at the intolerance, the racism, and the stupidity of these people who probably call themselves Christians.

The rhetoric of the Wolf Slayer and McBush during the last two weeks has been very unsettling. They love to talk about Barack "Hussein" Obama and they love to accuse him of being dangerous, unamerican and a terrorist. The crowds have responded predictably with shouts of "kill him" and "terrorist" and "treason".  My fear is the slimmy tactic that the McBush campaign is engaging in will only take the slightest match to set off a powder keg of racial intolerance and religious fear mongering.  In fact it is already starting.  Dana Milbank reports:

Worse, Palin's routine attacks have begun to spill into ugliness. In Clearwater, arriving reporters were greeted with shouts and taunts by the crowd of about 3,000. Palin then went on to blame Katie Couric's questions for her "less-than-successful interview with kinda mainstream media." At that, Palin supporters turned on reporters in the press area, waving thunder sticks and shouting abuse. Others hurled obscenities at a camera crew. One Palin supporter shouted a racial epithet at an African American sound man for a network and told him, "Sit down, boy."

This is a very, very dangerous game McBush is playing. There are too many nutjobs out there like this one, with just a little bit of encouragement, will do something very bad. Just yesterday, McBush asked the crowd "who is Barack Obama?" Immediately you hear a supporter yell "terrorist." McBush pauses, the audience laughs, and McBush continues on, not acknowledging, not chastising, not correcting. He knows what he is doing. He is fostering hatred and negativity by not standing up to it. He should know better. It's appalling and is destroying whatever is left of his reputation.

The Congressional Budget Office’s top budget analyst said that the prolonged downturn in the stock market:

“has wiped out about $2 trillion in Americans’ retirement savings in the past 15 months, a blow that could force workers to stay on the job longer than planned, rein in spending and possibly further stall an economy reliant on consumer dollars.”

And it was yet another sucky day on Wall Street today. I don't think I will even open my 401 (K) statement when it comes in the mail next week. What's the point, I'll never be able to retire at the rate I'm able to save. Social Security will be gone or "privatized" if the wing-nuts have their way. 

How freak'n depressing.  Instead of retiring I guess I'll be flip'n burgers or greeting Walmart customers in my "golden" years. 

Easily goes to Team Obama.  That makes it 3 - 0.  There's no doubt about what the papers and talking heads will be saying tomorrow.  In fact here is the focus group of undecideds on CNN:

Who expressed his views more clearly in the debate?
Obama 60
McCain 30

Who spent more time attacking his opponent?
Obama 17
McCain 63

Who seemed to be the stronger leader?
Obama 54
McCain 43

Who was most likeable?
Obama 65
McCain 28

Will people vote for a person that they don't even find likeable?  No good news for McCain there...or should I say in a snarky, disrespectful, condensending, asshole way:  for that one.  That one could not mask his disdain for Senator Obama. 

McCain somehow needed to change the game tonight. He didn't. All of his attempts to paint Obama as foreign and dangerous are undercut by his performances, time and time again. Obama once again came off as presidential, while that one came off as peevish and angry. People will trust what they see themselves because they have certainly grown distrusting of McCain's campaign rhetoric.

My guess is that in about two day Obama will pick up another couple of point.  Right now he up nationally about 9 points.  That's an electorial blowout!  I just wish my own state would turn blue.  It's trending that way, but I'm not sure there is enough time left for it actually to happen. 

Oh...and one last thing before I go dream about an Obama presidency:  I love the ekg style tracking on CNN.  The insta-response monitors hooked up to the undecideds completely short circuits the ability of the right-wing noise machine to ramp up the "our guy won because the Democrat sighed" bull crap.  It's hard for the wingnuts to make their case that McCain won when the numbers are instantly so starkly in the opposition.

Get Out the Vote:  There's 29 days left until election day, but you don't have to wait until then.  Starting today registered voters in Indiana can vote. You can vote in person at the County building in Crown Point (for us L.C. people) any weekday between Oct. 6 and Nov. 3, as well as Saturday Oct. 25 and Nov. 1.

I am sooo glad the Stock Market was saved today!  That desperately needed bail-out of poor, poor Wall Street with the $7,000,000,000 of taxpayer money sure did put confidence back into the market!  Hopefully Main Street will no longer seep its toxic waste onto Wall Street.

Boy-oh-boy I can't wait until Monday when everything will be all better! Now that all of our problems are solved I won't have to worry about losing my job, right!?!  Can I please have my shares of AIG now??? I would love to go shopping!!! Isn't that we're suppose to do when we are in a crisis???

"Gosh-gee-WALLY! Her dun winked at me!" 

I’m sure I’m not the only male in America who, when Palin dropped her first wink, sat up a little straighter on the couch and said, “Hey, I think she just winked at me.” And her smile. By the end, when she clearly knew she was doing well, it was so sparkling it was almost mesmerizing. It sent little starbursts through the screen and ricocheting around the living rooms of America.

And this time I'm not even talking about a wolf. See!  A "Famous Person" even said so:

Brought to you by the same people responsible for the "McCain Wins Debate!" that was ran BEFORE the freak'n debate took place.  Who in the hell is running this train wreck of a "campaign"? 

Absolutely hilarious.  Urrr...I mean Gosh Durn HEE-LARIOUS!

They managed to set her expectations so low that you would have to dig them out of the ground to find them. So I guess if “winning” meant that she didn’t drool on herself then the McBush campaign should be very happy tonight. But after all the spin has been spun, it will be clear that she didn’t do her ticket any favors.

To me she came across as the Stepford VP. Her robotic recitation of Steve Schmidt's talking points was her only role. She didn’t bother listening to any questions because she was too busy trying to stay on script to risk any sort of spontaneity or glimmer of independent thought. After her disastrous Couric interview she certainly couldn’t risk losing her place on her note cards or saying something outrageously stupid for SNL to mock.

Even still she did have a few outrageous moments that should give everyone pause. Like the fact that she stated that she would not answer the questions that were being asked! What the hell! Like the fact that she thinks that she would be able to grab even more executive power than Cheney stole! I don’t know of I will be able to sleep tonight!

She also has the nerve to talk about a 'second Holocaust'. You do NOT politicize the Holocaust. Doing so is an insult to the Jewish people. To make it even more insulting, was her implication is that an attack on Israel is exactly the same as years of oppression, being forced into ghettos and camps, being tortured and experimented upon and then being exterminated by the millions. I’m sure those polls numbers in Florida will keep going south for McBush after that blunder.

Her worst moment…her “Dukakis” moment was towards the end. Palin tried a snarky attack on Joe by claiming that he did not understanding what it's like to raise a family. It was a pretty shitty thing to say to Joe. Apparently no one clued her in on what this man had gone through. After Joe set her straight about losing his wife and daughter and raising his surviving children on his own her response was to not even acknowledge his very authentic, very painful experience. Can you imagine losing a child? Do you think it is something that you ever get over? As a mother I can’t even wrap my mind around it. As I mother I can’t understand Palin’s response. There was no, "I'm so sorry for your loss" or any humanity of any kind. Rather, she talked about how she and McCain were mavericks. So instead of playing the part of the compassionate conservative she acted like the valley girl teenager she speaks like. Cold, obnoxious, empty-headed, blatant, and stupid. And I wouldn't have blamed Joe if he had walked across the stage and punch her in the face. And she surely deserved it.
.
The woman is horrible and her grating, “folksy” voice gives me a headache. But (luckily) now that the debate is over they can put her back in a box only to be propped up when they need her to give her stump speech. I’m sure I don’t have to worry about listening to her giving any more press interviews (Fox doesn’t count) until after Election Night.

So…things have been pretty sucky the last couple of weeks. Between the never ending problems in my house, soccer, volunteering at the campaign office, and the crisis in the markets causing absolute chaos at work, I haven’t had the time or the inclination to write.

I do miss writing – it’s therapeutic for me. Hell, maybe that’s why I have been feeling so crappy lately! Maybe if I started writing again I would feel better!?! I just wish there was more time in a day – make that free time!

Defenders of Wildlife have an ad up in swing states that hits Wolf Slayer on...slaying wolves. It hits her on the disgusting practice of aerial hunting.

It’s no secret that I don’t like hunting at all. I hope my sons never partake in it. But I do understand that there are ethical hunters who also are great stewards of the woods and wildlife. I do understand that there are times when hunting may be warranted – like when deer need to be culled to prevent disease in over-populated areas where they would otherwise starve. I do understand ranchers wanting to protect their herds. That’s not what this is about. This is about exterminating wolves. This is about the slaughter of a beautiful animal.

Warning: This is not for the faint of heart.



This ad literally hurt my heart to watch, but I think it is really going to be effective. It’s the kind of truth people need to see. What’s being allowed to happen is barbaric and idiotic.

I hope this gives independent fence-straddling animal lover weighing his/her choices between McCain and Obama something to think about. It should also give a gut-check to women by taking off the shine of the “PTA Mom” imagine. What type of person would want to offer a bounty for the severed foreleg of a wolf? And what about hunters…I wonder what their reaction will be to this ad. Do they really respect “canned hunts” or fishing with dynamite? Wouldn’t real hunts see it as unfair and unsportsmanlike? There is no sport to this type of "hunting". It serves no purpose other than to satisfy blood hunger.

The National Hurricane Center has warned residents of Galveston, Texas, that they "face certain death" if they do not flee before Hurricane Ike comes ashore from the Gulf of Mexico.

Ike will hit Texas within the next few hours. This is one big-ass storm. I can't even imagine. According to the weather service it is 900 miles wide and its tropical storm-force winds extended up to 275 miles -- the length of the Texas coastline -- from its center, for a total reach of about 550 miles. Un-freak'n-believable!

And after all the warnings and all the begging:

Galveston officials said as many as 40 percent of the city's 58,000 residents ignored the evacuation order.

These people are on a tiny stretch of land that will be decimated. I don't get it! Why didn't they get the hell out? They are talking about a twenty foot storm surge. That's a tsunami. Do they all have a death wish?!?

I'm afraid this is going to be a horrible tragedy. I hope I’m wrong.

News Week dropped a bombshell of a article this morning about Wolf Slayer's character:

An Anchorage judge three years ago warned Sarah Palin and members of her family to stop "disparaging" the reputation of Alaska State Trooper Michael Wooten, who at the time was undergoing a bitter separation and divorce from Palin's sister Molly.

This is before she became governor. Seriously, is there any doubt that this woman didn't use her power as head of the state to destroy this man, as is now alleged in the "troopergate" scandal?

Court documents show that Judge Suddock was disturbed by the alleged attacks by Palin and her family members on Wooten's behavior and character. "Disparaging will not be tolerated—it is a form of child abuse," the judge told a settlement hearing in October 2005, according to typed notes of the proceedings. The judge added: "Relatives cannot disparage either. If occurs [sic] the parent needs to set boundaries for their relatives."

Do they really want to keep putting her out there as the poster child for Republican "family values". She's looking down right white-trash to me.

"It is the mother's [Hackett's] responsibility to set boundaries for her relatives and insure [sic] they respect them, and the disparagement by either parent, or their surrogates is emotional child abuse," Judge Suddock wrote. He added that: "If the court finds it is necessary due to disparagement in the Mat-Su Valley [the area north of Anchorage where Palin and her extended family live], for the children's best interests, it [the court] will not hesitate to order custody to the father and a move into Anchorage."

No wonder that awful, completely FALSE ad came out of the McBush campaign yesterday claiming that Barrack wanted to teach kindergartners sex-ed. They knew this was coming and wanted to blunt the blow. But my guess is that Barack and Joe have never been warned by a judge that they were committing potential child abuse. Can't say that about the GOP ticket!

So far, 4155 families have lost a loved one in Iraq. 584 families have lost a loved one in Afghanistan. And there are tens of thousands of injured soldiers and yet, Megan McCain says: "No one knows what war is like other than my family. Period."



There are millions of familes thru this nation's history that know war or have paid a price in war, not just McBush. I really believe that he and his family honors his service, but do not honor the service of others. His voting record on Veteran issues prove that.

He recent fought against (but didn't bother to show up to vote on) the bi-patisan Webb/Hagel GI Bill. He said bill was "too generous". This bill would have allowed that if you did 3 tours (that's three years in Iraq) and want to get out and go to school, you could with the help of the VA. Did these soldiers not give enough to this country? Do they not deserve a good education?

He also just voted against the bipartisan Webb/Hagel Dwell Time Amendment which would have required troops to be home for the same amount of time as they are deployed. We have soldiers that are being made to return to Iraq for a third tour just 90 days after they had returned home to their families.

Throughout his Senate career he could have championed veteran's issues. As a high profile National hero, he should have championed veteran's issues. He did not. Instead he voted against increasing veterans and military health care 29 times that I could find. Maybe, just maybe, if he would have supported them we would have fully staffed VA hospitals. Instead we have VA hospitals closing, and the conditions at Walter Reed have became a national disgrace.

I believe our soldiers deserve better. Too bad McBush doesn't. Period.

Another in the line of drip-drip mini-scandals that, framed correctly by the Democrats, should completely destroy the Wolf Slayer's claims of being a different kind of Republican and a Reformer:

Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin has billed taxpayers for 312 nights spent in her own home during her first 19 months in office, charging a "per diem" allowance intended to cover meals and incidental expenses while traveling on state business.

The governor also has charged the state for travel expenses to take her children on official out-of-town missions. And her husband, Todd, has billed the state for expenses and a daily allowance for trips he makes on official business for his wife.

So not only is she an incompetent, fact-avoiding, zealot, but she is personally corrupt as well.

She wrote some form of "Lodging -- own residence" or "Lodging -- Wasilla residence" more than 30 times at the same time she took a per diem, according to the reports. In two dozen undated amendments to the reports, the governor deleted the reference to staying in her home but still charged the per diem.

This woman is a diva. She fires people who look at her wrong -- literally. She feels entitled to being reimbursed for own home. She charged tax payers 707 dollars a night to take her daughter to NY. She just another Republican robbing the tax payers, just like Frank Murkowski, who she replaced. How does this make her any different than Murkowski? I guess it's the lipstick.

Finally! And they used the "L" word!  This is EXACTLY what we need. Wonderfully done. Now we need another one like it Every. Single. Day. Call them out on all their lies and don't let them control the agenda. 

On Wednesday, Sept. 3, 2008, Palin the Wolf Slayer and Rudy Giuliani dismissed the work of all community activists by ridiculing the contributions of Barack Obama in his younger days on the South Side of Chicago.

They were truly some of the most arrogant, anti-reformist statements I have ever heard. Do all of these people, including my own family running with this latest talking point, even know what it is that they are all snaring at? Do they know what role community organizers have played in the history of this country?

Let’s start out by explaining just what it was that Barack chose to do as a twenty four year old – the thing that is soooo mockable to the GOP. Barack left a job on Wall Street to come to Chicago to work for Developing Communities Project, a church-based community organization on the South Side. During his three years as the director he set up a job training program, a college preparatory tutoring program, and a tenants' rights organization which fought with the City of Chicago to get Chicago Public Schools and housing developments cleaned of asbestos. He had thirteen employees working for him and a budget of nearly half a million dollars. So in his early twenties he was successfully LEADING. But he knew he could only do so much in the position he was in, so he returned to school. When he graduated from Harvard at the top of his class he returned to Chicago. He became a Civil Rights Attorney at a small law firm specializing in civil rights litigation and neighborhood economic development. He was still fighting for the underprivileged.

Please explain to me how the work he did helping the disadvantaged was not honorable? He could have continued making big bucks on Wall Street; he could have became a corporate lawyer. Instead he decided that he would rather actually do something to improve the lives of those facing discrimination and hard times.

In the history of this country there have been others that had chosen to be community organizers. Here a just a couple examples, but where would we be without their contributions to society:

Susan B. Anthony organized the fight to guarantee women's suffrage in the United States by giving public speeches and uniting with fellow advocates of change.

Martin Luther King Jr. organized to end racial segregation and discrimination by inspiring this nation to come together.

Dorothy Day organized the Catholic Worker movement to help the poor and homeless, and promote social justice.

Hell, the founding fathers of this country were community organizers. John and Samuel Adams organized their communities and made the case for Independence.

It was community organizers who created this country. And it has been community organizers, throughout this country's history, that have been responsible for progressive change -- the change that allows Wolf Slayer to be the first GOP female VP candidate, albeit spouting brainless venom.

So I'll take the first community organizer as President ANY DAY over some person with so-called "executive experience" who remains ignorant and clueless about one of the most honorable professions, in my view, we have in this country.

Methinks it’s going to be a rough day at work on Monday:

WASHINGTON — Senior officials from the Bush administration and the Federal Reserve on Friday informed top executives of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the mortgage finance giants, that the government was preparing to seize the two companies and place them in a conservatorship, officials and company executives briefed on the discussions said.

Yet another example of private companies gobbling up all the profits and saddling the taxpayers with the risks. And another example of the failure of a free market with too-little regulation. And what is it that they want to do with social security? Oh yeah, right…privatize it. Doesn’t that make you feel secure? And what is it that McBush said? My friends the fundamentals of our economy are strong...This is just a mental recession. I guess I should stop being such a whiner.

Seriously though, I think we will be seeing some big banks collapse in the very near term and loans will be non-existent. This is going to continue to be a bumpy ride.

Last night during the biggest speech of his life, McBush used the backdrop of a beautiful building. An odd choice, right? I mean, he has been getting beat up about not knowing how many luxury houses he owns. Why would he want to remind everyone of one of his many, many gaffes?

Well, as it turns out, the building is Walter Reed. As in Walter Reed Middle School! You think they would learn to use “the google” a little better. Then maybe they would have downloaded the right picture…the one of Walter Reed Medical Center.

And the school is none too happy about it:

"It has been brought to the school's attention that a picture of the front of our school, Walter Reed Middle School, was used as a backdrop at the Republican National Convention. Permission to use the front of our school for the Republican National Convention was not given by our school nor is the use of our school's picture an endorsement of any political party or view."

It’s funny; the incompetent fool claims to care so much about our wounded soldiers but no one in his campaign could spot the difference between the hospital where we send our wounded soldiers and some middle school in North Hollywood. I guess next time, if they want to get it right, they need to do a little more research before they try to use our troops as a tasteless politcal prop.

And one other thing: have you noticed that no one wants McBush to use their property, but yet he keeps dong it without permission? So far that I know of he has been smacked around by John Mellencamp, Bruce Springsteen, Mike Meyers, Frankie Valli, Van Halen, Jackson Browne, and now today by both Heart and Walter Reed Middle.

After watching four days of the vitriol and spitefulness that was the Republican Convention I am more energized to fight for what I believe in. We must keep going and keep pushing back against the negativity that is the Republican Party. They have nothing to offer but lies, fear, and hatred. They cannot be allowed to bully themselves into the White House again. They want us to cower in a corner and vote against our own best interest. But not this time. 

Thank you Hillary for channeling Harriet Tubman and reminding me of how important this fight is and that I can't become discouraged:

This is the story of America. Of women and men who defy the odds and never give up.
How do we give this country back to them?
By following the example of a brave New Yorker, a woman who risked her life to shepherd slaves along the Underground Railroad.
And on that path to freedom, Harriet Tubman had one piece of advice.
If you hear the dogs, keep going.
If you see the torches in the woods, keep going.
If they're shouting after you, keep going.
Don't ever stop. Keep going.
If you want a taste of freedom, keep going.
Even in the darkest of moments, ordinary Americans have found the faith to keep going.
I've seen it in you. I've seen it in our teachers and firefighters, nurses and police officers, small business owners and union workers, the men and women of our military -- you always keep going.
We are Americans. We're not big on quitting.
But remember, before we can keep going, we have to get going by electing Barack Obama president.

A drinking game. Everytime McBush says "My friends" during his speech tonight let's drink a shot. My guess is I'll be passed out from either bordom or alcohol poisoning within the first five minutes.

Last night McBush said this:

"President Clinton had opportunities to get Osama bin Laden. President Bush had opportunities to get Osama bin Laden. I know how to do it and I'll do it," he told ABC's "World News" in an interview.

Did he just call Shrub…who he supports 95% of the time…a failure?

In any case, if he already knows how to capture bin Laden, then why in the hell has he not shared his little secret with is good buddy? That seems like information that would be valuable to our national security. And everyone should be asking him why he letting our soldiers die when he has the secret knowledge to stop it! How’s that for being patriotic? Sounds to me like he is putting his political ambitions before the good of the country, doesn’t it? McCain would rather win an election than capture the most wanted man in the world.

He’s either a grandiose jackass that thinks we're going to fall for his Nixonian bullshit or a traitor. Either way, he should be called on it.

For what it is worth. The Wolf Slayer did what she needed to last night. She went out there and proved that she can read a teleprompter of a speech that was prepared by Bush’s speech writer week’s ago for someone else. Yes, she made it her own by once again putting her family on display. But to be honest, she is a master at the art of the “pause” and she played to crowd well. I have to give her credit for that. That’s something that even a lot of very seasoned politicians can’t do - like McBush. He’s awful at reading the crowd.

She also undoubtedly solidified the fundie nut-job part of the republican base. Up until last night they weren’t energized by the idea of a McBush presidency. They loved her (again, will someone explain to me just when minors having pre-marital sex became acceptable to the religious nut-jobs?).

But beyond that her speech was just platitudes. She was smug, sarcastic, and nasty, without offering any reason to actually vote for the republican ticket. And she once again told bold faced lies to the American people (that’s a whole other posting).

Do you know what I hope people realize? That’s all they have! They are running on the exact same policies of the current administration and their only hope is that no one notices and no one questions them on it. The one thing that to GOP has perfected is the art of “branding”. They are master marketers. They sold George Bush, the colossal failure, twice! And now they’re trying to sell us the “maverick” and the “reformer”.

Will the American people buy it? Time will tell, but I hope not. I hope they are paying attention this time. I hope they have noticed that there has been not one mention of the economy or how they attend to fix it. I hope they will notice that there has been absolutely no mention of how they plan to change the direction of the country. They can’t win on the issues and they know it. All they can do is lie and attack Obama on what are really their own weaknesses. They are just empty suits and trying to sell to same old, same old and hoping to get away with it once again.

Poor Wolf Slayer. She is now the victim of the mean, mean, evil, chauvinist left and the press and they’re not going to take it!:

ST. PAUL -- Female Republicans embraced identity politics with gusto today, touting the virtues of presumptive vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin and suggesting that any attempts to question her qualifications amounted to blatant sexism.

In a "hear me roar"-style press conference, a parade of elected officials and GOP operatives issued a lengthy defense of the Alaska governor's credentials, and former Massachusetts governor Jane Swift said Palin has been the target of "an outrageous smear campaign."

"She has taken on the corrupt special interests in Washington and Alaska. She has stood up for families and made a difference," Swift said. "She is more prepared than Barack Obama to be the president of the United States. ... The Republican Party will not stand by while Sarah Palin is subjected to sexist attacks."

Boo, fu*k'n hoo!  The Republican Party, that after 196 years, finally got around to putting a woman on the ticket? The Republican Party whose platform is that women should not have the right to choose what happens to her own body? The Republican Party that has nominated the man who said this about Chelsea Clinton…the man who called his wife a C*nt…the man who told a joke about a woman being raped by an ape. Righhht, they really care about women and would never degrade them.

And I wonder what the Wolf Slayer will say about this line of defense since she had no problem ripping Clinton when she tried that defense:

During the primary Sarah Palin chided Hillary Clinton for complaining about sexism.

"She does herself a disservice to even mention it, really," Palin said. "When I hear a statement like that coming from a woman candidate with any kind of perceived whine about that excess criticism, or maybe a sharper microscope put on her, I think, 'Man, that doesn't do us any good, women in politics, or women in general, trying to progress this country,'" Palin said. "I don't think it bodes well for her."

Crickets... I guess she's not a maverick after all.  She's just a girl and you better play nice with her or she's going to cry.  I sure hope if she becomes VP (god forbid) that Putin plays nice with her and doesn't make her cry.  We wouldn't want her smearing all that make-up.

Suppose Barack Obama had a pregnant 17 year old daughter and her “baby’s daddy” was some black 18 year old angry high school drop out. What do you think the GOP talking points would be? Would we hear what a blessing it is?  How

GAWD…I want to puke. Really. And now we have Cindy, the pill popping thief, sitting with the happy couple at the convention playing with the other baby. What message does this send to young teens? That it glamorous to drop out of school, get knock’d up and have a shot gun wedding?

And if this is supposed to be a private family affair then why in the HELL is the McBush campaign making a circus out of it and blaming it on the press and those evil liberal that have no respect for the Palin family?

Say one thing and do another. The Christian way.

Gotta love the open mic. It's the only time you can get a real sense of how the pundits actually feel. And when you've lost Peggy Noonan, you've got a problem. She has genuine conservative bona fides. She probably is fuming that her old party taken over by a bunch of wacko, nut-job, zealot theocrats.



I must say this made me happy, but I'm also a little pissed at Chucky T. If this is really what he thinks, then he has been full of shit on the air for the last few days. Quit pandering and do your frack'n job as a political analyst!

The Washington Post is on fire tonight. Here's their latest reporting:

Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, the Republican vice-presidential nominee who revealed Monday that her 17-year-old daughter is pregnant, earlier this year used her line-item veto to slash funding for a state program benefiting teen mothers in need of a place to live.

Honestly, at first this was fun to me.  The woman is a real nut-job and it was amusing watching McBush try to spin all of the stuff they missed while "vetting" her.  Now I am just pissed and worried that there is a chance that people might actually vote this ticket in.  I mean Shrub did get selected twice and we are still using diebold voting machines.

According to Passage House's web site, its purpose is to provide "young mothers a place to live with their babies for up to eighteen months while they gain the necessary skills and resources to change their lives" and help teen moms "become productive, successful, independent adults who create and provide a stable environment for themselves and their families."

So this asshole, holier-than-thou nut-job who, as is turns out, was knocked up before she eloped...who believes she has a right to dictate what a woman can and cannot do with her own body...who voted to refuse sex education in schools, and who wants to deny access to protection for teens is now responsible for throwing young mothers and their babies out on to the streets. How very FUCKING Christian of her! I just love how every life is “precious” to them…at least while it is in the womb. After that who cares if the kid starves to death or is homeless or is sent off to die in a war so that Cheney's oil buddies can make a pretty penny.

I am so tired of rules and religious convictions only applying to certain people. If you're the governor and your daughter gets knocked up, she can go live in one of your three houses.  If you're some poor girl with no family you get no empathy, no compassion. They call you a sinner and kick you to the curb.

CNN is reporting that McBush is taking his ball and going home. He has canceled the interview that he had lined up with Larry King and is said to now be boycotting CNN. He's all pissy that reporters are actually starting to do their job and have dared to ask questions about if the Wolf Slayer is qualified on national security issues.

And the McBush camp also essentially said today that until the media plays nice, they won't let anyone interview the Wolf Slayer. No MTP. No Face the Nation. Nice. So we all just get to guess whether she's qualified (not).

Here's the interview that their panties are in a wad over:



Any one with two brain cells to rub together can figure out that she has zero relevant "Commander in Chief" experience like they are trying to push. In Fact, here is what the general who runs the Alaska National Guard says:

Maj. Gen. Craig Campbell, adjutant general of the Alaska National Guard... said he and Palin play no role in national defense activities, even when they involve the Alaska National Guard. The entire operation is under federal control, and the governor is not briefed on situations.

Another talking point debuked.

I’m watching or rather trying to keep my eyes open during the Republican Convention. These people are ridiculous and really boring. Keith just broke in with new “breaking” news being reported at the Washington Post about the Wolf Slayer. Apparently the Palins were part owner in a car wash that got shut down by the State for operating illegally:

State records show the business ran into trouble with Alaska's division of corporations business and professional licensing after Palin became governor of the state in 2006.

A Feb. 11, 2007 letter to the governor's business partner advises that the car wash had "not filed its biennial report and/or paid its biennial fees," which were more than a year overdue.

The warning letter was written on state letterhead, which carried Palin's name at the top, next to the state seal.

On April 3, 2007, the state went further and issued a "certificate of involuntary dissolution" because of the car wash's failure to file its report and pay state licensing fees.

Good God this woman is an incompetent nutcase! I'm laughing so damn much these last few days over this woman. It will be fun over the next few nights to watch the Republicans defend her tooth and nail, when in the end she’s either going to drop out because she needed to “spend for time with her family” or get the kick in the ass from the campaign. I really don’t see her making it until November.

You know, I really I am starting to feel sorry for The Onion.  How are they going to top this in it's ridiculousness?

I love the pink boas!  I  have to wonder though, when the party organizers were ordering Hookers & Blow do you think they knew they were getting a band?!?

The 17-year-old daughter of Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin is pregnant, Palin said on Monday in an announcement intended to knock down rumors by liberal bloggers that Palin faked her own pregnancy to cover up for her child.

Bristol Palin, one of Alaska Gov. Palin's five children with her husband, Todd, is about five months pregnant and is going to keep the child and marry the father, the Palins said in a statement released by the campaign of Republican presidential candidate John McCain.

Hummm…I wonder if Bible-thumpers have more pregnant teen kids than those of us who actually teach responsibility to our kids? 

But anyway...the real reason I even touched on this and the real story here is that abstinence only education doesn't work.  It's unrealistic and dangerous.  Preaching religion, abstinence, and "just say no", does a great disservice to kids.  Teenagers are going to have sex. You cannot control human nature with prayer and freaky, creepy Purity Balls. What tennagers need is to be educated on how to protect themselves from diseases and unwanted pregnancies.

And I really, really feel sorry for this girl. Can you imagine how awful this must be for her? She is faced with the daunting task of raising a child and doesn’t deserve to have her personal life exposed to the entire world because of her mother’s political aspirations. I wish her the best of luck.

Btw…I also want to point out that Palin opposes any use of birth control by married couples – condoms included. How well do you think that is going to play with Hillary supporters and your average soccer mom? I don’t think too well.

There should be no doubt what-so-ever that John Sidney McBush the Third lacks the intelligence and judgment to be the President of the United States. The most important decision that he has made thus far has been his VP selection. Could he have screwed it up any more? Seriously. Three days after he rolls out Palin the Wolf Slayer they have decided that maybe it’s time to vet her:

The campaign of John McCain has sent a staff of eight people into Alaska to conduct background checks and vetting on Governor Sarah Palin.

Word is they have eight rooms reserved at a Wasilla hotel.

Any person that would dare vote for this man does NOT put country first.

The McCain campaign has gone to great lengths to present the selection of Sarah Palin as one made after a careful, meticulous vetting process. But evidence continues to suggest that the Arizona Republican made his VP choice with surprising haste.

On Saturday, a Democrat tasked with opposition research contacted the Huffington Post with this piece of information: as of this weekend, the McCain campaign had not gone through old newspaper articles from the Valley Frontiersman, Palin's hometown newspaper.

How does he know? The paper's (massive) archives are not online. And when he went to research past content, he was told he was the first to inquire.

"No one else had requested access before," said the source. "It's unbelievable. We were the only people to do that, which means the McCain camp didn't."

What an incompetence buffoon. But I guess if the person is your “soulmate” there’s no need to vet, right? I wonder how Cindy felt about him saying that? He is known for leaving his aging wife for a younger version. I hope she has a prenup.

Well, it is looking like Gustav is going to hit as a Category 3 sometime on Monday. That mean less time to get out and less time to prepare.  Luckily it has weakened some after going over Cuba. But as the masses of people in the Gulf Coast region are fleeing their homes, the dynamic duo of Grandpa McSame and Palin the Wolf Slayer are rushing in:

ST. PAUL, Minn. - Likely GOP presidential nominee John McCain and his running mate, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, are traveling to Mississippi on Sunday to check on people getting prepared for Hurricane Gustav. [...]

Aides say McCain and his wife Cindy will join Palin in traveling to Jackson, Miss., Sunday at the invitation of Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour because of concerns about people threatened by the storm [...]

The McCains and Palin will receive a briefing at the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency — a permanent operations center monitoring hurricane response.

Just what these people need right now! I’m sure they are sooo relieved. I bet they are going to do a "heck of a job."  I wonder if they will be handing out bottled hot water to dehydrated babies?

My guess is that man who ate cake as we lost New Orleans the latest time and the beauty queen doesn’t have a lot by way of hurricane disaster relief to offer. And why isn’t the dynamic duo flying to N.O. to see about hurricane prep if they are so concerned? Mississippi isn't in any of the hurricane models as being in the path of the eye of the storm. It’s kinda like how McSame went into the Green Zone in Iraq with heavily locked-down security team to pronounce to America how safe it is in Iraq.

Yeah, yeah, I’m cynical as all hell about this, but let’s remember how much Grandpa McSame cared about the people that lives were destroyed when Katrina hit:

• McCain Voted Twice Against Establishing A Commission To Study The Response To Hurricane Katrina. [ 9/14/2005, 2/2/2006]
• McCain Opposed Granting Financial Relief To Those Affected By Hurricane Katrina. [9/15/2005]
• McCain Voted Against Five Months of Medicaid For Hurricane Katrina Victims. [11/3/2005]
• McCain Voted Against Emergency Funding Bill, Including $28 Billion for Hurricane Relief. [5/4/2006]

You can paint lipstick on a pig, but it is still a pig. The people of the Gulf Coast are not going to forget how they were left to drown. The people in this country are not going to forget the thousands of people locked in the Superdome for six days straight with no food, no water, and no medical attention.  Or at least that is what I hope.

Ok..to all you mothers out there. Does this seem believable?

News of her pregnancy was kept quiet at first while Ms. Palin went about her work as governor, and her water broke while she was attending an energy conference in Texas. She reportedly delivered a 30-minute speech before flying home, where she delivered the baby boy the next morning.

So...lets get this straight. Sarah Palin didn't let anyone know she was pregnant until she was almost full term. Everyone was shocked because she wasn't showing at all. At the end of her pregnancy, knowing that she was high-risk, she goes to Texas to speak. While there her water breaks and she still waits around for her plane, boards it and takes the 7 hour flight back to Alaska.  She got home and gave birth the next morning (a Friday) and was back at work on Monday.  She took no maternity leave at all - not a single day off after giving birth to a premature baby with Down syndrome. Super woman, indeed!

What mother would put her unborn child at risk like that by getting on that plane? Wouldn't you stay close to your doctor?  And would you not immediately get to a hospital when your water broke, knowing that you were high risk? And what about the airline?  Do you really think they would have allowed her on the plane? 

Something doesn't add up.  She must be absolutely stupid and irresponsible for risking the life of her child by getting on that plane or she is lying.  Either way it goes against her character.