Ladies and Gentlemen...

...your next vice president.

This is an honest-to-God 1988 clip of Alaska Governor and Republican Vice Presidential running mate Sarah Palin as a 24 year-old sportscaster on Anchorage's KTUU.

Ah, that brings back memories. Remember when we were all in our cross-eyed Marie Antoinette phase?

I can't wait until the Republican party seizes on this as proof positive that Sarah Palin represents the Second Coming of Ronald Reagan.

John McCain's "record of service" (sic) to Katrina victims

After John McCain has his photo op at Haley Barbour's house, he'll be going to his convention in St. Paul, which he has recast as focusing on service in the face of disaster:

"There is very little doubt that we have to go from a party event to the call to the nation for action, action to help our fellow citizens in this time of tragedy and disaster, action in the form of volunteering, donations, reaching out our hands and our hearts and our wallets to the people who are under such great threat from this great natural disaster."

I wonder just who he figures is going to be volunteering and donating? Certainly not conventioneers, and certainly not the federal government.

Let's look at John McCain's record the last time there was a natural disaster in New Orleans -- after he'd finished with his cake-eating photo-op -- shall we?

McCain Acknowledged Public Demand for Oversight. A week after Hurricane Katrina, McCain commented on the public's demand for accountability. McCain said, "There's clearly a mood for aggressive oversight on this issue, because people are demanding it. It's a national catastrophe ... I don't know if it affects the general mood of Congress on every issue, but there's a strong desire...to find out what went wrong and what went right." [Dallas Morning News, 9/7/05]

• But, McCain Voted Against a Commission to Examine Government Response to Katrina. In 2005, McCain voted against creating a congressional commission to examine the federal, state and local response to Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf Region. Senators Obama and Clinton both voted in favor of creating the commission. The motion failed 44-54. [H.R. 2862, Vote #229, 9/14/2005]

• McCain Again Voted Against Katrina Commission in 2006. In 2006, McCain again voted against establishing a commission to investigate the response to Hurricane Katrina, including the federal government's role and the impact of the disaster. Both Senators Obama and Clinton voted in favor of the commission. The motion failed 44-53. [H.R. 4297, Vote #6, 2/2/2006]

• McCain Voted Against Investigating Waste, Fraud, and Abuse. In 2005, McCain voted against an amendment that would establish a committee to investigate waste, fraud and abuse in the awarding contracts in Iraq and Afghanistan, and for the reconstruction after hurricanes Katrina and Rita. The amendment failed 44-54. [HR 3058, Vote #259, 10/19/05; HR 2862, Vote #228, 9/14/05; S 1042, Vote #316, 11/10/05; S 2766, Vote #176, 6/20/06]

McCain Said Americans Should "Come to the Aid" of Katrina Victims. In his statement following Hurricane Katrina, McCain said, "American citizens have proven time and again how generous and selfless a people we are, and now we have an opportunity to come to the aid of those in need." [Statement of Sen. John McCain, U.S. Fed News, 9/1/2005]

• But, McCain Voted Against Expanding Unemployment Benefits in Wake of Katrina. In 2005, just two weeks after Hurricane Katrina devastated the Gulf Coast, McCain voted against allowing up to 52 weeks of unemployment benefits to an individual as a result of a major disaster under the Disaster Unemployment Assistance Program. Both Senators Obama and Clinton voted in favor of extending the benefits. The motion failed 43-52. [H.R. 2862, Vote #234, 9/15/2005]

• McCain Voted Against Granting Katrina Victims Access to Medicaid. In 2005, McCain voted against granting access to Medicaid to victims of Hurricane Katrina for up to five months. The amendment would also provide full federal funding for Medicaid in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama for up to one year and provide $800 million to compensate providers caring for Katrina evacuees. Both Senators Obama and Clinton voted in favor of assisting the Katrina victims. [S. 1932, Vote #285, 11/3/2005]

More here.

And there is absolutely nothing in McCain's record since to indicate that he has changed his mind one bit about the role of the federal government in helping people affected.

When Americans needed John McCain to look out for them, he didn't -- because he was too busy making sure his wealthy campaign contributors got their tax cuts. Does anyone honestly think he'll be any different this time?

Excuse me, Senator McCain, but the nomination isn't for auditioning your next wife

Jed again:

Talk about pictures being worth a thousand words. Note how Palin doesn't want to get too close to Old Granddad. Note how he keeps sneaking peeks at her chest. Note also how he plays with his wedding ring through the whole thing, while Cindy gazes on in the background.

I don't think a whole lot of women have much sympathy for Cindy McCain. After all, payback's a bitch, isn't it? And I don't think Palin is at all dazzled by John McCain, but she's a shrewd operator who'd be a damn fool to turn down an opportunity like this. Still...it'll be interesting to see what people who spent eight years blasting Bill Clinton for thinking with his dick think as they watch John McCain do the same thing. Only don't you think that the entire country is a bit extravagant as a gift to a hottie you're obsessed with?

And you're not exactly being subtle about it, either.

Ew.

In other words, it's just a photo-op

So John McCain is taking his harem with him to inland areas of Mississippi so that he can convey: "Message: I Care":

Senator John McCain is heading to Mississippi Sunday to see the preparations under way for Hurricane Gustav, campaign officials said Saturday night.

The hurricane, which is heading toward the Gulf coast, poses a delicate problem for Republicans: they are gathering in St. Paul for their national convention just as the storm has led to the evacuation of New Orleans, reviving memories of Hurricane Katrina and the much-maligned response of the Republican administration three years ago.

Mr. McCain plans to go to Jackson, Miss., which is inland, with his wife, Cindy, and his newly-selected running mate, Gov. Sarah Palin of Alaska, his campaign said. Mr. McCain will take only a small pool of reporters, and will tour a hurricane center with Gov. Haley Barbour, the Mississippi governor.

This way he can do a photo-op without having to actually, you know, DO SOMETHING. What could he do? Well, he could volunteer Cindy's plane -- the one she SIMPLY MUST have in order to get around Arizona -- to get people the heck out of New Orleans and Biloxi. But then the rabble might get the carpets dirty. And besides, most of THOSE PEOPLE look like this:



They don't give campaign donations, and they don't vote Republican. So why should McCain care what happens to them?

But if he thinks a photo-op tour with Haley Barbour is going to make us forget this:



...he'd better guess again.

Gustav, God, McCain, W, and Moore....

Love him or hate him, Michael Moore has been speaking out bravely against the total and complete insanity of the past 8 years from the get go. This morning I woke to a letter in my inbox from Mike to God, and...so clearly does it spell out whats happened to us all as Americans, who has hijacked our country, the undercurrent of ideals from nuts implying who and what we are, and how helpless we have been in the face of a construct of fear designed to immobilize us.

This insidious fear , constructed by the Rovian spin machine, has glued us to our couches and demanded that we sit on our hands while our fellow Americans and citizens of the world suffer; go shopping, is the message that we get from our leaders...don't question what is being done in our names because if we do, maybe we are less than patriotic. Even if he is over the top, Moore has bravely spoken out about the truth of this sad situation. He is also someone who immediately took action when Katrina hit, raising money, closing his office, and sending all of his resources there. That is what Americans do in the face of disaster. As the Bush administration is winding down their fiasco, maybe we can start to get back to ourselves. 8 years is a long, long time in the American short term memory, but maybe we need to start expecting a little more of ourselves and eachother.



As of yesterday New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin had ordered the evacuation of NOLA and hopefully that is moving along as well as can be expected. There is no wonderful and smooth way to get the old and infirm out of their homes and to ensure pets and property. There is no easy way to then return to destroyed homes and to try to rebuild again. Even with most of the people gone...even with a partially rebuilt infrastructure...there is no way to tell what is going to happen. The same news reports about Louisiana also apply to Florida, Texas and just anbout any Gulf region where this or the next storm could hit. From the AP:



So, direct from Mike's site, here is his letter from this morning...you can read it here or there...and be sure to look at the trailer to the new documentary Trouble the Waters which is playing in limited release right now and should be required viewing as we decide who is going to take over the mantle of Commander in Chief.

Sunday, August 31st, 2008
An Open Letter to God, from Michael Moore

Dear God,

The other night, the Rev. James Dobson's ministry asked all believers to pray for a storm on Thursday night so that the Obama acceptance speech outdoors in Denver would have to be canceled.

I see that You have answered Rev. Dobson's prayers -- except the storm You have sent to earth is not over Denver, but on its way to New Orleans! In fact, You have scheduled it to hit Louisiana at exactly the moment that George W. Bush is to deliver his speech at the Republican National Convention.

Now, heavenly Father, we all know You have a great sense of humor and impeccable timing. To send a hurricane on the third anniversary of the Katrina disaster AND right at the beginning of the Republican Convention was, at first blush, a stroke of divine irony. I don't blame You, I know You're angry that the Republicans tried to blame YOU for Katrina by calling it an "Act of God" -- when the truth was that the hurricane itself caused few casualties in New Orleans. Over a thousand people died because of the mistakes and neglect caused by humans, not You.

Some of us tried to help after Katrina hit, while Bush ate cake with McCain and twiddled his thumbs. I closed my office in New York and sent my entire staff down to New Orleans to help. I asked people on my website to contribute to the relief effort I organized -- and I ended up sending over two million dollars in donations, food, water, and supplies (collected from thousands of fans) to New Orleans while Bush's FEMA ice trucks were still driving around Maine three weeks later.

But this past Thursday night, the Washington Post reported that the Republicans had begun making plans to possibly postpone the convention. The AP had reported that there were no shelters set up in New Orleans for this storm, and that the levee repairs have not been adequate. In other words, as the great Ronald Reagan would say, "There you go again!"

So the last thing John McCain and the Republicans needed was to have a split-screen on TVs across America: one side with Bush and McCain partying in St. Paul, and on the other side of the screen, live footage of their Republican administration screwing up once again while New Orleans drowns.

So, yes, You have scared the Jesus, Mary and Joseph out of them, and more than a few million of your followers tip their hats to You.

But now it appears that You haven't been having just a little fun with Bush & Co. It appears that Hurricane Gustav is truly heading to New Orleans and the Gulf coast. We hear You, O Lord, loud and clear, just as we did when Rev. Falwell said You made 9/11 happen because of all those gays and abortions. We beseech You, O Merciful One, not to punish us again as Pat Robertson said You did by giving us Katrina because of America's "wholesale slaughter of unborn children." His sentiments were echoed by other Republicans in 2005.

So this is my plea to you: Don't do this to Louisiana again. The Republicans got your message. They are scrambling and doing the best they can to get planes, trains and buses to New Orleans so that everyone can get out. They haven't sent the entire Louisiana National Guard to Iraq this time -- they are already patrolling the city streets. And, in a nod to I don't know what, Bush's head of FEMA has named a man to help manage the federal government's response. His name is W. Michael Moore. I kid you not, heavenly Father. They have sent a man with both my name AND W's to help save the Gulf Coast.

So please God, let the storm die out at sea. It's done enough damage already. If you do this one favor for me, I promise not to invoke your name again. I'll leave that to the followers of Rev. Dobson and to those gathering this week in St. Paul.

Your faithful servant and former seminarian,

Michael Moore
MMFlint@aol.com
MichaelMoore.com

P.S. To all of God's fellow children who are reading this, the city of New Orleans has not yet recovered from Katrina. Please click here for a list of things you can do to help our brothers and sisters on the Gulf Coast. And, if you do live along the Gulf Coast, please take all necessary safety precautions immediately

c/p RIPCoco

Flavour of Brazil, Leichhardt

I'm sure I could become a vegetarian, if only I didn't like meat so much.And so we find ourselves at Flavour of Brazil, a temple for carnivores in inner-west Leichhardt. The all-you-can-eat Brazilian Churrasco Banquet is gluttonous protein consumption at its finest. Normally priced at $35 per person, we take advantage of the $26 off-peak discount, available all-day Sunday and Monday and Tuesday

Bill Maher's New Rules for August 29th, 2008

The Goddess is VERY unhappy with the Palin selection

I wonder if there'll be a nice big cake for John McCain's birthday at the Republican Convention this year? And I wonder if they'll pose with it and throw it out -- just as they did last time.

If you are in the New Orleans area, listen to Jeff Masters:

It should go without saying that it's time to leave New Orleans. But, I'll say it anyway: It's Time to Leave New Orleans! The risk of staying in New Orleans is unacceptable. This is a huge and dangerous storm that has already killed a lot of people. The projected track and strength of Gustav is very close to that of Hurricane Betsy of 1965, the Category 3 hurricane that overwhelmed New Orleans' levees, and killed 76 people. Get out now.

Oh, and about that "no worries" hurricane-proof offshore oil drilling thing? What a shame to debunk that fairy tale right before the convention:

Crude-oil and natural-gas shipments from the Gulf of Mexico were curtailed and Valero Energy Corp., the largest U.S. refining company, cut production as Hurricane Gustav strengthened on a path to strike Louisiana within two days.

Evacuations closed the Louisiana Offshore Oil Port, the nation's largest crude oil terminal, and cut flows from offshore platforms into the 10,500-mile (16,900-kilometer) gas pipeline to the U.S. northeast owned by Williams Cos. Enbridge Energy Partners LP closed gas conduits out of the Gulf. Oil producers shut more output, down 6.6 percent yesterday, according to U.S. government figures.

Marathon Oil Corp., the fourth-largest U.S. oil company, said it shut production at both its Gulf platforms, as Royal Dutch Shell Plc and BP Plc raced to cut production of 800,000 barrels a day of oil by day's end. Enbridge Energy Partners LP began shutting off Gulf lines capable of bringing in 6.7 billion cubic feet per day of natural gas. Louisiana's petrochemical- producing parishes ordered residents to leave, adding that return routes will be blocked and curfews imposed by nightfall.

``Devastating storm-surge flooding'' is possible, officials in St. Charles Parish, home to three oil refineries, said in a statement. Officials urged residents to leave before a planned mandatory evacuation at noon, local time, saying Gustav may be strong enough to breach levees protecting the parish just west of New Orleans.

Oil producers halted at least 6.6 percent of output in the region, according to U.S. government figures issued yesterday. An update is due later today.

Gustav, now a Category 4 hurricane with winds of 145 (230 kilometers) per hour or more, picked up speed as it headed toward western Cuba and the U.S. Gulf Coast, the National Hurricane Center said in a bulletin. The storm was about 185 miles east of the western tip of Cuba at 11 a.m. New York time. A storm surge of 19 feet is possible at landfall in Cuba.

Gustav may strengthen before reaching the northern Gulf of Mexico in two days, the forecast said. Tropical-storm-force winds extend as far as 160 miles from the center.

Fields in the Gulf produce 1.3 million barrels a day of oil, about a quarter of U.S. production, and 7.4 billion cubic feet a day of natural gas, 14 percent of the total, government data show. Hurricane Katrina in 2005 closed 95 percent of regional offshore output and, along with Hurricane Rita, idled about 19 percent of U.S. refining capacity. Three parishes in Louisiana with refineries planned mandatory evacuations today.

And in case you're wondering what your president is doing:

The president called state leaders in Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Texas in the early morning from the White House before heading out for a 90-minute bike ride, spokesman Scott Stanzel said.

Can't miss that bike ride, no sirree. But hey...he made a coupla phone calls. What else do you expect a president to do? No wonder John McCain thinks Sarah Palin is qualified to be president. Look at who's been doing the job for the last eight years.

McCain is out of His Mind...Sarah Palin and the Future of this Country....

Unqualified, wingnut, crazy, scary....these are just some of the words that come to mind when looking at the life and time of Sarah Palin.

Ah, Sarah Palin, runner up to the Ms. Alaska crown, outspoken opponent of a woman's right to choose, enemy of the Polar Bear, and great leveler of the field in the area of youth, gender, experience and the naming of children, will be side by side with pinky mouse McCain on the republican stump starting immediately.

Is this a joke? Trailing her cadre of children, including the infant dangling oddly from the arms of an older daughter, this oddball is being paraded around the bubble where the Bushies live, while the rest of America is shaking their heads at the similarities to the Harriet Miers debacle. Isn't anyone advising the McCain campaign?...what an embarrassment!








Sarah Palin is advertising herself as a mother, but if the naming of children is any indication of one's ability to reason and govern, then the republicans are in trouble. How she chose her kid's names is anyone's guess (and it has been mentioned that on those occasions that she admits that she tried pot , which I should add is legal in Alaska, she may have thought up those names!)

So, we've got Track and Willow, Piper, and Trig(Paxson Van Palin,) but worst of all is poor Bristol, who is known as Brillo....Track will be called up to duty in Iraq soon, Trig may be the love child of Brillo...who can keep them straight? Trig, with Downs Syndrome is more likely the 44 year old wanna-be Commander-in-Chief's, child, though she remained pretty scary thin throughout the pregnancy; shes strongly anti-choice yet kept this a secret from even her closest co-workers for 7 months, knowing that the child would have Downs Syndrome. US Conservatives at About.com had this:

The Palin family released this statement the morning after Trig Paxson's birth:

“Trig is beautiful and already adored by us. We knew through early testing he would face special challenges, and we feel privileged that God would entrust us with this gift and allow us unspeakable joy as he entered our lives. We have faith that every baby is created for good purpose and has potential to make this world a better place. We are truly blessed.”

Three days later, Gov. Palin was back at work.

She went back to work 3 days after having this child!? And who is going to be caring for these children when she is VP? McCain is pretty damned old, not to mention the cancer; he could very well die. Is this who we want for president? Haven't we been through the not very bright and very crazy wing-nut thing for 8 long years already? Palin has no experience; less than no experience in that she is in such a remote area...her level of experience is in no way comparable to Obama's supposed lack of experience; she really, really has no experience except in the way of governing a state with very, very few people. She has had the ability to wield a strong outspoken wingnuttian stance on just about every issue that the rest of the country is too busy trying to pay the rent and juggle some semblence of a life, to take seriously, and the fact that McCain and his team view any part of her bio as a viable political option is just plain scary.

Onward: She has a husband who is part commercial fisherman and part oil field worker, and a history herself as a "maverick" of sorts, who hunts and fishes and is a lifetime NRA member; her bubbly yet carefully crafted delivery of support for the war, guns, and the conservative line, make her an interesting choice for McCain in a field where the PUMAS might actually be crazy enough to vote for a woman, any woman....my god, is it not apparent that Alaska and the life there is not representative of most of the country and that just as McCain is removed from the lives of most Americans to the point that he can't even state what "middle class" means or how many houses he has,what car he drives, this nut is also so far from the main stream as to be...a joke....this is a joke, right?

Sarah Palin is a surprise, and she is surely an all or nothing roll of the dice for a desperate Republican party that is looking towards a convention shown in split screen with hurricane Gustav bearing down on NOLA, in a stark remembrance of the failures of this administration. Even now, the White House is trying to pull Bush from having to appear on that split screen. Clearly this is not what Bush needs for his legacy of failure...Forget the beauty of karma and how the timing of Gustav cries out to the Bushies paybacks-a-bitch boys! Is the gulf prepared for this thing?...its horrifying that all of this time later, the infrastructure questions have not been clearly addressed and flooding has become a huge problem across the country.

I fell pretty strongly that most Americans are disgusted enough on both sides to just vote the knee jerk opposite of what we've had. I cant see this Palin woman going up against Biden in any meaningful way and I look forward to McCain trying to hold his own in a direct debate with Obama. But in reality, most Americans lack the interest, attention span, and mostly time to go much past their morning paper in this. They will vote their pocketbooks and the gas pumps...the war...food prices...and disasters on television. I'm not so sure that polls mean much in this strangest of strange times, but they sure are embraced by the media as a foundation for creating a reality show that could somehow produce ratings. This particular episode is like the Big Brother house when the old guy makes a pact with the sorority sister.

So, with Brillo and Trig, Twig, Twat, and Pipe....Tracks and Willy and the little green sprout....as the shiny-shiny that Mom, (with her obligatory still-working-apparently vagina,) is holding up to distract us from the magnificent speech of Obama, we have to know that it wont last long when its clear that the meat is not there. Mom is viewed as an intellectual lightweight, as is McCain, and up against the democratic ticket they will fail. Remember, most of America views Alaska as a scene from the Cicely Alaska of Northern Exposure. What happens when the scruffy John Corbett character ends up being the scary hairless mouse McCain?

Not to even mention that scandal has rocked her office lately in the form of an aide trying to kick her sister's ex out of his job. That bit of pulpy gossip has legs only in that its personal dirt of the kind that sells rags on the checkout line. Further, her popularity among the sparse voters up there could have something to do with $1200 oil rebates to cover the price of fuel....is she popular? Maybe, if you could even begin to tease all of this out.

So, if this is for us a Dan Quayle moment, minus the sharp intellect of the Q, then I hope to be heading north for the duration...If its just another installation of that wacky DC show, Wingnuttia, then I hope that Ms Palin and all the little Palinettes enjoy their 15 minutes of fame.
Some of us are serious about trying to fix this country; John McCain is certainly not. This nomination proves it beyond a doubt.

c/p RIPCoco

I link, YOU decide

Jazz Shaw has an interesting find over at The Moderate Voice.

Would it matter? Not to me, and probably not to the wingnuts and dupes who think Sarah Palin is an excellent choice. Again...CHOICE. However, if the watchword this year is "It's not the baby, it's the lying", then, well, sauce for the goose, baby.

No wonder John McCain likes Sarah Palin

She's a mean-spirited, nasty piece of work -- just like him. From the Anchorage Daily News, January 27, 2008:

The governor's appearance on KWHL's "The Bob and Mark Show" last week is plain and simple one of the most unprofessional, childish and inexcusable performances I've ever seen from a politician.

Anchorage DJ Bob Lester unleashed a vicious, mean-spirited, poisonous attack on Senate President Lyda Green last week while our governor was live on the air with him.

When we played the tape on my show the day after it happened, we received 130 calls. Even some Palinbots were disgusted.

[snip]

Early on in the conversation before Palin started to crack up, Lester referred to Sen. Green as a jealous woman and a cancer. Palin, who knows full well Lyda Green is a cancer survivor, didn't do what any decent person would do, say, "Bob, that's going too far."

But as the conversation moved on, Lester intensified his attack on Green.

Lester questioned Green's motherhood, asking Palin if the senator cares about her own kids. Palin laughs.

Then Lester clearly sets the stage for what he is about to say by warning his large audience and Palin. He says, "Governor you can't say this but I will, Lyda Green is a cancer and a b----." Palin laughs for the second time.

[snip]

But there is more. Lester then describes Green's chair as big and cushy. A clear reference to the senator's weight. Palin laughs a third time. She's just having a grand old time.

Palin was clearly enjoying every second of Lester's vicious attack on her political rival.

But it gets worse.

Lester asks Palin point blank: "Do you have any idea of what you did, to make Lyda Green dislike you, hate you?" How does Palin respond? Does she do the right thing? What you would expect from a mature leader, a governor and say, "Bob, Lyda doesn't hate me."

No, she responds like a 13-year-old and says, "Um, you know once and a while I try to figure that out but I can't figure that out."

The Palin camp says the governor did call Green and apologize. That was the right thing to do. But the governor's statement shows the apology a half-hearted one.

The statement in part reads: "The Governor called Senator Green to explain that she does not condone name-calling in any way and apologized if there was a perception that the comment was attributed to the Governor."

But there's strong evidence Palin did condone Lester's name-calling. At the end of Lester making fun of Green as a mother, calling her a cancer, twice, and saying she has to go; after calling the senator a b----, making fun of her weight, and accusing Green of being jealous and hateful; after all of that, Lester ends the conversation offering to visit Palin.

How does Palin respond? "I'd be honored to have you."

The statement released by the governor's office also called Palin's action bad judgment.

But bad judgment is when you stay up late the night before a big test, order steak at a Chinese restaurant or wear blue jeans to a black tie affair.

What the governor did was wrong.

Not only did she sit by and watch a decent public servant get thrashed in front of tens of thousands of people, she actually enjoyed it.

This is our governor, for goodness sake.

And if John McCain has his way, she will be the Vice President of the United States.

Listen for yourself:

But of course John McCain is going to see nothing wrong with this, given his track record:

(giant super-sized h/t)

Caturday/Dogurday Blogging

If I were independently wealthy, I would want to do this:

Friday Big Blue Smurf Blogging: What They Said

Today's honoree: Jon Soltz, who weighs in on the Palin nomination.

Money quote (emphasis mine):

Maybe Palin could one day be someone who has the judgment and experience that would make me feel comfortable with her leading our Armed Forces. But not now. Not after just 60 days thinking about those issues, and even then, just toting the party line. What's this say about McCain's judgment - to put political PR above sound judgment when it comes to naming a potential, if not very possible, Commander in Chief? What's it say about his judgment vs. Barack Obama, who faced with the same question, answered, "Joe Biden."

In times like these, with the stakes so high, and the decent chance that McCain might not live long into his first term, I can think of no scarier thought as a proud war veteran than someone with such an empty resume holding in her hands the lives of my buddies still in the service.

Wow...what a nitwit!

Oh. My. God.

This dame makes Dan Quayle look like Stephen Hawking. Does anyone believe that if Sarah Palin had testicles, she'd have been selected?

Sure...the 80% of the most vociferous Hillarions who are actually Republicans (*cough* Darrah Murphy *cough*) are going to be thrilled to vote for Sarah Palin for Vice President. But what about THINKING Hillarions? Are they going to vote for a woman who wants abortion to be outlawed -- criminalized -- in all cases? Are they going to vote for a woman who thinks creationism ought to be taught in schools? Are they going to vote for a corrupt hack simply because she has the right genitalia?

Howie Klein at Down With Tyranny, who is one of the must-read stops on this story, has the reaction of the right, and it seems that once you get past the John Hagees and the rest of the theocratic right, even the wingnuttiest of the wingnuts -- people like Jonah Goldberg and Ramesh Ponnuru, are appalled.

I think it's hilarious that the so-called "family values" crowd is so thrilled about a woman who's going to leave five kids, including a four-month-old Downs Syndrome infant, home so she can go around the country saying "Vice Preznitin' is fun!" You know that reality has been completely inverted when this crowd demonizes Michelle Obama and extols the virtues of Sarah Palin. I guess this is just another case of careerism being OK only for Republican women.

If I were Hillary Clinton, or even someone like Harriet Christian, I'd feel insulted that the McCain campaign thought this nitwit, who doesn't even know what the Vice President's job is, thinks creationism should be taught as science, and who wants to be a few brain cells away from the presidency; that this corrupt shtik dreck was some sort of Hillary-Equivalent, even though she, in a Phil Gramm moment last March, essentially called Hillary Clinton a "whiner". I could be wrong, but my understanding of the Hillarion viewpoint is that she is the stronger, more experienced candidate, not just that she has a uterus. If it were about the uterus, Obama could have chosen Kathleen Sibelius or Claire McCaskill or Janet Napolitano and the Hillarions would have been happy. But they made it clear it was Hillary or nobody. So it remains to be seen if a woman who believes Fred Flintstone rode a dinosaur to work will suffice for them.

Bill Maher's Real Time Returns to HBO Tonight, Fridays at 11PM Eastern!

...and not a moment too soon! I love that little nasty misogynist with his array of big boobed wimmin' and his matter of fact schtick covering all the crimes and incompetence of this administration; but more than that, he skewers the unfathomably quick decline of this culture. Say what you will about the guy, but he has stated much of what has needed to be said over these nightmare years, from his infamous declaration on his late lamented Politically Incorrect that the 9-11 hijackers were alot of things, but they weren't "cowards," having flown those planes directly into buildings, to his ongoing disagreements with 9-11 Conspiracy Theorists, to his clear opinions about organized religion, which will be available for all to see in what is being called one of the most sacrilegious movies ever made.
Welcome back Bill...And I for one, am waiting anxiously to see the movie..."Religulous."

So now we will see what the Hillarions are made of

The buzz as of now is that Alaska governor Sarah Palin is John McCain's pick for a running mate, and now we will see just how important it is to the Hillarions to have a Vagina-American on a presidential ticket.

The available Republican field was about as lame a group as you're likely to find anywhere, but the selection of Palin is a deeply cynical one. Camp Grandpa Simpson has made it very clear that popularity and breaking ground and inexperience on the national stage are liabilities, and yet here they are, plucking the governor of Alaska to be just a few of McCain's deteriorating brain cells away from the presidency.

Certainly Palin is a better choice for McCain than the robotic Mitt Romney, or the excreble Tim Pawlenty, who were the most frequently bandied-about names. She's attractive in that bandbox Republican sort of way, and she's not known as a doctrinaire wingnut, though she strongly believes that women should not have control over their own reproductive destiny, she's suing the federal government to have polar bears removed from the threatened species list, and she's A-OK with the NRA. At 44, she removes the "too young" meme from consideration (though the IOKIYAR rule no doubt still applies).

Palin has a child with Downs Syndrome, which is going to make for much holier-than-thou proclamations about Democrats and abortion (though pro-choice people would applaud her decision to carry her pregnancy BECAUSE we believe that choice is just that -- choice). The other edge of that particular sword is the possibility that the family values crowd will question her priority in running for the vice-presidency when she has a special needs child at home.

Overall, I think this selection has as much benefit as it does peril for Obama, because it means no hay can be made about identity politics, about age, or about levels of experience. So the end result is this: Do you want real change or not? If you want theocrats having a large say in government, if you want more cash shoveled into the pockets of corporations, if you want endless war, if you want women's bodies to be the property of the government, if you don't value your privacy, vote John McCain. Otherwise, Barack Obama is still your guy.

UPDATE: Well, well, well. Isn't this special. Looks like Ms. Palin has a little "Troopergate" problem:

The above comes to us via Josh Marshall, who weighs in on the larger implications of the Palin nod that are worth considering even if you think using political power to wash your family laundry is perfectly OK:

Next, John McCain's central and best argument in this campaign is that Barack Obama simply lacks the experience to be President of the United States. And now John McCain, who is a cancer survivor who turns 72 years old today, is picking a vice presidential nominee who has been governor of a small state for less than two years and prior to that was mayor of a town with roughly one-twenty-seventh of the constituents that Barack Obama represented when he was a state senator in Illinois.

Whatever you think of Barack Obama's qualifications to be President, Palin is manifestly less qualified. And that undermines the central premise of McCain's campaign.

Albion Place Hotel, Sydney

Battered flathead and chips, tandoori chicken burger,and grilled snapper filletI remember when the strip along George Street cinemas used to have a Timezone, a Galaxy World, a cafe called New York at the Movies and a seemingly permanent walkway of scaffolding.Today there's a new generation of hotels, cafes, cake shops and clothing stores.In amongst them is the Albion Place Hotel, modern, light

Friday Music Blogging: Special American "Pass-the-Hat" Health Care System edition

Mr. Brilliant and I first heard Peter Karp at a blues concert at the Warwick Valley Winery and Distillery a few years ago. In an age of geezer bands and $100 concert tickets, we like to find new local bands you can see for $15-$20. Peter Karp's Roadhouse Band was one of those.

Karp used to play in this area at venues like the Stanhope House in Stanhope (which closed earlier this year), the Paramus Picture Show (also closed) and The Turning Point in Piermont. Now he lives in Nashville, and rarely comes around this way. But this morning came an e-mail from Karp's mailing list with some very sad news about an upcoming benefit:

On Sept. 23 at Maxwell's in Hoboken, NJ, music lovers will get a glimpse of what the brotherhood of musicians is all about.

Five national acts will donate their time and talent, and Maxwell's the space, to raise money for the Karp family. Marylou Karp, wife of Blind Pig recording artist and singer-songwriter Peter Karp, was diagnosed in June with Stage 4 ovarian cancer.

Marylou, 50, is the mother of two children, James and Courtney. Her illness was initially misdiagnosed as a herniated disc, and she is currently undergoing aggressive treatment at Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York City.

Gina Fox, who is organizing the event and will perform, said of her friend's diagnosis, "this is a fight for life. The physical, financial and emotional stresses that go along with this fight are overwhelming, and this benefit is meant to help the Karp family with crippling medical bills."

Ovarian cancer, referred to as a silent killer, is often at stage 3 or 4 before it is properly diagnosed. It is the fifth leading cause of cancer death in women, with one out of 100 women succumbing to it.

The show begins at 7 pm, and donations are $20 at the door. All proceeds will be donated to the Karp family.

Anyone who wishes to help but cannot attend the event is asked to visit www.ginafox.com, where a secure PayPal link is in place.

Performing that evening are:

· Nicole Hart & NRG featuring Gil Paris
· Charlie Jones & Paul "Hernandez" Unsworth featuring Dave Keyes
· Gina Fox
· Dave Malachowski & The Woodstock Allstars-Pete Levin & Jill Stevenson
· Dennis Gruenling & His Tribute to Little Walter Band
· Popa Chubby

Please direct all inquiries to gina@ginafox.com.

Obviously I don't know what kind of health insurance the Karp family has, if any. But this is a reminder that here in the United States, there are people battling cancer who have to rely on the kindness of family and friends in order to pay their medical bills in the face of a ruthless killer like ovarian cancer.

If you're in the Hoboken area (Barry, I'm talking to you), please consider going to this show. I'm not familiar with everyone playing, but Dennis Gruenling's band and Popa Chubby are definitely worth the price of admission.

Joe Scarborough Rubber Room watch: The Day After

This morning I'm going to spend some time watching "Morning Joe" to see how The Scar manages to spin last night as good for John McCain.

Perhaps our first indication came at 6:03, when the news crawl under the clip from Obama's speech was about Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick.

6:09 - Scar refers to Joe Biden as "a real guy", then catches himself and says "Well, Obama's a real guy too...", but his heart isn't in it. And his point has been made.

6:14 - discussion of how the economy grew by 3.3%. Scar says it's because "Wal-Mart and other stores were doing better." David Shuster, looking as if he's been relegated to being the guy who scopes out locations for "Dirtiest Jobs" on the Discovery Channel, reminds him wryly that a weak dollar makes our exports cheaper and more attractive.

6:32 - Logrolling in our time. Scar quotes WaPo's Eugene Robinson, who is also a ubiquitous presence on MSNBC:

All Americans, regardless of race or party, should think of John Lewis bleeding on that Alabama bridge -- and then think of him at Invesco Field, watching a black man accept his party's nomination. Tears are entirely appropriate.

6:33 - Hide the children. Peggy Noonan is coming. And Mika quotes from her Column of Unusual Vapidity:

I think he was saying, I'm a surprising person, but I can be president. I'm attractive, but I have depth. And by the way, the past eight years? I will be so much better than that. Take a chance. Not a gamble, a chance.

Will it work? We'll see the polls on the final convention bounce soon. We'll know some of the answer then. But I have a feeling this speech will be like the Europe trip. It will take time for people to let it sink in, and decide what they think. And I'll tell you, Mr. Obama left a lot of space for Mr. McCain to play the happy warrior next week. He left the Republicans a big opportunity to wield against him, in contrast, humor, and wit, and even something approximating joy.

Mika didn't quote that last paragraph, and I don't blame her one bit. I mean, after all, think about who's likely to speak at the Republican National Convention next week. Think about John McCain and his rendition of the Bush Beavis Giggle. Somehow "joy" isn't the word one would associate with this bunch.

7:03 - Buchanan calls last night's acceptance speech "a manly speech." This is followed by the Obligatory Obama is a Wuss remarks. I guess we ought to let these guys enjoy it while they can.

7:07 - Joe Scarborough decides that using the metaphor of "lining the bullets up" and then "firing the gun at John McCain", used in the context of a black nominee, is a good idea. Buchanan, who decries the demise of "White America", is still in manlove, says "More Rambo, less Alan Alda." Scar says "Americans love millionaires."

7:09 - They run John McCain's congratulatory ad. Funny how they don't mention the one that even a Fox affiliate questioned, that contains a frame of Obama speaking in front of a crowd with people holding up letters reading C H A N G E -- except the "C" is darkened out of existence, and the "E" is out of the frame.

7:24 - Mika opines that early reports on the speech had said it wouldn't go on the attack, and wondered if there was a last minute change. Obviously Mika has never heard of the head fake.

7:26 - Chuck Todd, who is usually more sane than this, remarks that chants of "USA!" are unheard of among Democrats. And worse, he says that this is a gesture of patriotism.

7:27 - Joey Scar makes the obligatory "San Francisco Liberals" reference, implying "gays aren't patriotic." Then he refers to "Jews and everybody else." Everyone, presumably, except Muslims.

7:43 - It seems McCain's running mate is not going to be Tim Pawlenty. Scarborough apparently didn't listen to the Clintons' speeches, because he puts out the name of Governor Sarah Palin of Alaska. He belittles the notion that a 72-year-old man with cognitive difficulties and three bouts of melanoma needs a running mate who's ready to be preisdent. Scarborough's love of John McCain is so deep he thinks McCain is immortal. Buchanan makes me laugh by saying Mitt Romney is up to the task of debating Joe Biden.

I'll tell you this much: Next Tuesday, when I wake up and don't have a job, I have plenty to do. But I'll tell you one thing I won't be doing -- sitting in front of the TeeVee watching this bunch of nimrods.

And this is what we have to worry about now...

Go take a look at the photograph Skippy posted this evening. It's a screencap from a McCain ad (original story at Raw Story, where a commenter writes: "I am a sound editor for film and TV in Hollywood. IT IS TRUE that hours are spent on editing, not only picture, but sound as well. A commercial like this has at least 4-5 editors working many hours on it, a Supervising Editor to approve the final edits.. and then the producer and director have a final look and give it their seal of approval!").

Then come back and tell me if YOU agree that it's no accident.

Not that the Republicans SHOULD catch a break, but this is just too good

You really have to wonder about the Republicans this year. First Stuart Shepard of Focus on the Family asked his minions to pray for "torrential" rain to fall on Mile High Stadium tonight -- and the weather was gorgeous. Now it looks like instead of raining on Obama's parade, New Orleans may drown again while Republicans party hearty in the Twin Cities.

Three years after Katrina, the city's residents STILL have to ask if the levees will hold, and the hydraulic pumps STILL don't work. And next week the Republicans get to try to defend their party's record over the last eight years while the hideous neglect of New Orleans plays out yet again at the same time.

Of course Gustav is not something that could have been predicted to coincide so exactly with the Republican National Convention. But what the McCain campaign might have considered was the name of the place where John McCain is going to have a rally and name his running mate tomorrow:

Tickets are still available for Sen. John McCain's Friday, Aug. 29, rally at Wright State University's Nutter Center in Fairborn.

(h/t: Hoffmania)

How fitting.

I am really, really, really proud of my country.

Wow. This, my friends (sic), is what a president sounds like:

Keith Olbermann is completely bowled over. Chris Matthews is practically crying. But forget about the pundits. Two moments that I just saw are seared into my mind's eye forever. One of them is of a black woman who just saw this incredible piece of history live and in person. She was standing with her hands clasped in front of her face and her eyes closed, still not quite sure that she's just experienced what she has -- that a man who looks like her, and like her family and like her children, may very well have sealed the deal tonight to become our next president. And the other is of that man, a man we knew was capable of a barnburner, but I'm not sure anyone believed that a human was capable of something like this. It was of that man taking one last look before leaving the stage, looking at a crowd of over 70,000 people and realizing that he'd really done this.

I was too young to have a lot of memories of Jack Kennedy when he was alive. But I've seen the photos of how people responded to him, and I remember what this country was like when I was a child. I grew up in troubled times, often terrible times. But even during the worst of the racism of the 1950's and the political upheaval of the 1960's, we knew what America was supposed to be. And the people who defiantly sat at lunch counters and registered voters; the marchers against the Vietnam War, were trying to take an America that had lost its way in many ways and set it right. Sometimes change is the most patriotic thing you can do -- and that is the idea that Barack Obama got across tonight.

It remains to be seen whether what we saw tonight is what we'll see as we head towards November. But at least for now, I owe Barack Obama an apology for wondering if he had the stones for this fight. Because what we saw out there tonight was no less than a warrior for justice, for peace, for America is the shining beacon it used to be. And that warrior called the rest of us to action.

When Barack Obama looked into the camera, at once angry and forceful and making clear in no uncertain terms that this is a group effort, I was reminded of nothing so much as this:

When one door closes, another one opens

I spent much of the day going through papers, throwing away effluvia from my desk drawer, finding a home for a half-dozen boxes of tea, talking to some co-workers I probably won't see again and others who have become dear and treasured friends. I walked around with an unfortunately-colored sheet of pink paper, obtaining signatures verifying that I had no outstanding materials from our library, that I had no outstanding travel advances for which to account, and noting my telephone extension and voice mail password, so any messages that come in can be retrieved after I'm no longer there. I took home my pictures weeks ago; my New Yorkistan poster and some framed antique sheet music, but I still had my pantry of boxes of matzos, small cans of tuna fish, and individual applesauce cups. By the end of the day, I reached my goal of having nothing left to take home tomorrow except my desk fan, which as a function of having reached A Certain Age, is rendered necessary at a moment's notice.

I'm surprisingly not sad or depressed, and I'm not sure why. Perhaps when I wake up Tuesday morning and realize that there isn't anyplace I have to be, it will hit me. Perhaps I'll navigate this particular adventure with the kind of pluck and optimism that's completely alien to my personality. After all, the reason I had my resume ready and was ready to start a job search the minute the layoff announcement was made was because I've been anticipating this particular shoe dropping ever since our last layoff in 2005. Three years is a long time to worry that another layoff could occur at any time. So there's a certain relief in having had that shoe drop. You could ask why I hadn't started looking for a job then. But one doesn't give up a job that's twenty minutes from home, where you don't have to put in 80-hour weeks, where the health insurance is fantastic, the paid time off is generous, the retirement benefits are even more generous, and the work is interesting just because one had a tendency to worry.

So tomorrow I get my pink sheet signed by the Help Desk guys, who will then disable my network account. I'll go to the front desk and turn in my ID badge, and then go out the door to whatever awaits.

I watched Al Gore speak tonight with eloquence and calm urgency, clearly more relaxed and comfortable in his own skin than he was eight years ago:

He now fills the shoes of elder statesman, a president Manqué who understands full well the journey of disappointment that Bill and Hillary Clinton had to navigate to get to last night. It's difficult to imagine Gore's frustration during the early years of the Bush term, as the train wreck it has been became more evident every day. And yet tonight, introduced as "Nobel Prize Winner", it's clear that Al Gore has long since gotten past how he was robbed of the presidency by butterfly ballots, a government apparatus in Florida that was rigged for his opponent, and a partisan Supreme Court bound and determined to put George W. Bush in the White House. He is now more than an elder statesman, he is the world's primary voice for environmental concern and climate change. He is clearly adored by this crowd, and the man I saw speak tonight is one at peace with the direction his life has taken, evern though it's a different one than he wanted, different from what he sought, different from what he expected.

Al Gore now knows that when one door closes, another one opens. There's always the chance that on the other side of that door is a 1500-foot sheer drop onto pointy-tipped rocks. But sometimes the other side of that door reveals opportunities we couldn't have possibly imagined.

I am in the early stages of the employment search, with a few possibilities that may yet bear fruit. On Tuesday, I start being able to devote myself full-time to finding my next opportunity. On Tuesday, the Obama-Biden ticket begins the fall campaign. ON Tuesday, the Republicans gather in St. Paul just as a storm named Gustav hits the Gulf Coast. On Tuesday, children go back to school, and the kind of peculiar new beginning that also coincides with the end of summer and the preparation for gray winter, kicks into gear.

On Tuesday, many of us turn a page to something new. And as Al Gore knows, sometimes that something new is just as good or better than that for which you'd planned.

John McCain = 4 more years of secretive, unaccountable government

It's somewhat surprising that with even many people who should be on his side leery of John McCain's anger management problem, Johnny McCranky should allow the dark side of his personality out to a publication that's historically been friendly to him.

From a TIME interview with James Carney and Michael Scherer:

I wonder if you could define honor for us?
Read it in my books.

I've read your books.
No, I'm not going to define it.

But honor in politics?
I defined it in five books. Read my books.

[Your] campaign today is more disciplined, more traditional, more aggressive. From your point of view, why the change?
I will do as much as we possibly can do to provide as much access to the press as possible.

But beyond the press, sir, just in terms of ...
I think we're running a fine campaign, and this is where we are.

Do you miss the old way of doing it?
I don't know what you're talking about.

Really? Come on, Senator.
I'll provide as much access as possible ...

In 2000, after the primaries, you went back to South Carolina to talk about what you felt was a mistake you had made on the Confederate flag. Is there anything so far about this campaign that you wish you could take back or you might revisit when it's over?
[Does not answer.]

Do I know you? [Says with a laugh.]
[Long pause.] I'm very happy with the way our campaign has been conducted, and I am very pleased and humbled to have the nomination of the Republican Party.

So...is he senile and simply parroting back talking points given him by Karl Rove? Is he being unnecessarily testy and combative, or is this part of what we've seen in George W. Bush for the last eight years -- a man who feels entitled to the office, who feels he doesn't have to answer to anybody, a man who refuses to answer questions?

At the Democratic National Convention this week, we've heard a lot of how John McCain means more of the same failed policies. But it's more than that. It's four more years of the same arrogant, secretive, unaccountable view of the executive branch.

"Columngate"

Oh, fer cryin' out loud.

I wonder if the MSM are going to go out this far on a limb next week when the Republicans party as New Orleans gets hit by a hurricane again.

Case in point:

Boston Globe:

Barack Obama will take a significant political risk tonight when he accepts the Democratic nomination for president in a 76,000-seat stadium on a stage set with faux-Greek columns, accompanied by a cast of world-famous pop stars and fireworks.

[snip]

The white-washed plywood columns in particular became the fodder for much merriment yesterday, as aerial photos of the stage set made them look like a papier-mache Acropolis.

New York Times:

And workers put the finishing touches on the backdrop: faux columns intended to suggest a federal building in Washington and create an air of stateliness. (The McCain campaign named it the Temple of Obama, a label repeated by some commentators.)

Lynn Grossman at HuffPo:

But there is something coming Thursday night that, to my mind, is a blunder big enough to warrant the criticism: the Greek columns on the stage of The Invesco Field where Obama is to give his acceptance speech.

Or are they Roman columns? Perhaps an art historian will join the Best Political Team on Television so CNN viewers can differentiate.

All I can say is, Uh oh.

Even the Times Online in the U.K. gets in on the fun:

An elaborate stage — with white columns designed to resemble a classical Greek temple or the White House — has been built for his speech accepting the Democratic presidential nomination.

Critics seized on this as fresh evidence of a self-regard bordering on arrogance — the downfall of many an Ancient Greek hero — that had already been demonstrated by the faux presidential seal used briefly to decorate his podium this summer. Such is the sensitivity of the Obama campaign that it began circulating reports showing that President Bush had also used classical columns at his convention four years ago.

I will be at my soon-to-be-former job today, wrapping up projects and making sure my desk is cleaned out and I'm leaving nothing behind and talking to co-workers and shedding buckets of tears before going in tomorrow, getting 4000 signatures to make sure I'm not leaving with anything I shouldn't be, turning in my ID badge, and joining the ranks of Casualties of George W. Bush's America. But I'm quite certain that Joe Scarborough and the Fox News Bots and Campbell Brown on CNN and all the other Idiots of the Media are going to be talking all day about Barack Obama's Giant Phallic........columns.

Kudos go to Kossack "Michael D" to point out that the columned backdrop against which Obama will give his acceptance speech tonight is not about a Greek temple, or a Roman temple.

It's about the place on the steps of which the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King gave his "I have a Dream" Speech 45 years ago today:

And what is that place? The Lincoln Memorial:

....which, as you can see, has columns. It's also the LINCOLN Memorial. Lincoln was from Illinois. So is Obama.

Now, why is it so difficult for the Obama campaign, and other Democratic spokespeople, to point this out, instead of trying to jump through hoops in a vain attempt to avoid the inevitable?

You should be sure to click the link to the post at Le Grand Orange, because the diarist also takes a tour through Great Moments in Republican Use of Columns History, for our edification and enjoyment. Somehow I don't think Joe Scarborough is going to care. After all, why let reality get in the way of a good meme?

Where the heck was this guy four years ago?

Cheetohs this, you nepotism-careered moron

Willie Geist is just another jerk like Chris Wallace -- a lightweight who has the job he has because of his father. At least Mike Wallace has some serious journalistic cred; William Geist is known for dumb puff pieces on CBS Sunday Morning. At least Geist Sr's pieces are never mean-spirited. Yesterday Geist fils decided to interview bloggers at the Democratic National Convention to find out about these "Cheetohs-eating, Star Wars-worshipping bloggers who live in their mother's basement."

Cheetohs? Really?

I thought we were latte-sipping, Volvo-driving, arugula-eating elitists. I thought it was Real Men ate Cheetohs and drank Coors while watching football before going out to Wal-Mart in their Hummers.

Kudos to Bill Scher of Liberal Oasis, who does the Weekend Watchdog at The Campaign for America's Future, for not punching that sniveling little rat-faced git in the face. I'm not sure I would have met Mr. Geist with as much good humor.

The DNC is sort of like the Super Bowl -- you can't decide if you wish you were there or if you realize you're far more comfortable sitting at home on the sofa with a can of Hansen's Diet Tangerine Lime soda. Not that there was ever an issue of me going; the DNC doesn't exactly give credentials to solo bloggers with only 500 visitors a day. This isn't like Netroots Nation, where anyone with a few hundred bucks can buy a ticket. But I'm grateful to those bloggers who made the cut and are covering the convention. Because without them, all we'd have is a picture of a contentious group of disgruntled Hillary supporters and a Party Divided™, brought to us by a parade of Joe Scarboroughs and Chris Matthews, unable to hide their fury at their network's new star, and a parade of wingnut pundits brought there by the networks for the specific purpose of defecating early and often in the party punchbowl.

John McCain's health care plan

I know we're all buzzed on Joe Biden -- his passionate speech; his self-deprecating humor, his ridiculously cute family, and his even more ridiculously cute mother. And we're all full of euphoria about the history that was made tonight, and about how tonight we saw the Good Clintons instead of the Narcissistic Clintons. I know we want to savor the moment and revel in it for a 24-hour party, culminating in Barack Obama's acceptance speech tomorrow night. After all, tonight we came a bit closer to that "promised land" that the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King talked about over forty years ago.

But we have so much work to do. The ugly spectre of racism still exists, and we have to somehow find a way to get through to people that the consequences of electing John McCain are more dire for their future than any Fear of a Black Planet ever could be.

And here is just one example of why this work is critical. Because this is an example of the kinds of people who would be advising John McCain (emphasis mine):

Almost one of every four Texas residents – 24.8 percent – were uninsured in 2006 and 2007, based on an average of the rates for those two years. That's up from 23.9 percent for 2004 and 2005.

The national number also increased a bit for the two-year period to 15.5 percent. However, looking at 2007 by itself, the percentage of uninsured in the country fell from 15.8 percent in 2006 to 15.3 percent in 2007. (State percentages were given only for two-year periods.)

California still has the highest number – not percentage – of uninsured residents at 6.7 million, compared with 5.7 million Texans. The Texas number is up from 5.5 million in 2006.

But the numbers are misleading, said John Goodman, president of the National Center for Policy Analysis, a right-leaning Dallas-based think tank. Mr. Goodman, who helped craft Sen. John McCain's health care policy, said anyone with access to an emergency room effectively has insurance, albeit the government acts as the payer of last resort. (Hospital emergency rooms by law cannot turn away a patient in need of immediate care.)

"So I have a solution. And it will cost not one thin dime," Mr. Goodman said. "The next president of the United States should sign an executive order requiring the Census Bureau to cease and desist from describing any American – even illegal aliens – as uninsured. Instead, the bureau should categorize people according to the likely source of payment should they need care.

"So, there you have it. Voila! Problem solved."

And that, ladies and gentlemen, as Senator Biden would say, is John McCain's health care plan. You're not uninsured, you're just "differently categorized in terms of payment source."

We can do better.

We must do better.

The future of this country and the world hangs in the balance.

Meanwhile, in the Caribbean...

...Tropical Storm Gustav is weakened as it crosses Hispaniola, but the current storm track has it headed for the Gulf Coast -- the same coast devastated by Hurricane Katrina three years ago as George W. Bush and John McCain shared yuks while posing with a birthday cake for McCain that was then thrown away.

Here are the oil rigs located off the Gulf Coast of the U.S.:

Here is John McCain lying about the damage done to these oil rigs during Hurricane Katrina:

And here is what really happened:

At the time, nobody was talking about what had happened to the 4,000 offshore oil platforms - and 34,000 miles of pipeline on the seafloor - when Katrina ripped through the Gulf as a Cat 5 storm, followed a few weeks later by Hurricane Rita. Attention was rightly focused on the unfolding human tragedy, as well as the 7-9 million gallons of oil spilled from damaged pipelines, refineries and storage tanks onshore.

...

But for months after the storms, officials from government and industry repeatedly claimed that there were no "significant" spills in the Gulf. That line is still heard even now. Yet in May 2006, the U.S. Minerals Management Service published their offshore damage assessment: 113 platforms totally destroyed, and - more importantly - 457 pipelines damaged, 101 of those major lines with 10" or larger diameter. At least 741,000 gallons were spilled from 124 reported sources (the Coast Guard calls anything over 100,000 gallons a "major" spill).
Wells and platforms were shut down before the storm, so leakage from those facilities was minimal. Pipelines were shut down too. But what the officials failed to mention is they don't require industry to "purge" pipelines before a severe storm - so they were probably still loaded with oil, gas or liquid gas condensate. Any section of pipeline that was breached leaked all of that product into the Gulf within hours of the storm. That's what we think accounts for the widespread slicks seen on the imagery from September 1 and 2, covering hundreds of square miles and obviously emanating from many points of origin. These slicks dispersed after several days of high winds offshore, as shown by our followup imagery taken on September 12, but a few problems remained as evidenced by ongoing leaks from wrecked platforms.

Here's what Jeff Masters at Weather Underground has to say about the potential of this storm (emphasis mine):

As we saw in 2005 with Katrina and Rita, the large amounts of deep, warm water brought into the Gulf of Mexico by the Loop Current can help intensify hurricanes to Category 5 intensity. As explained in my Loop Current tutorial, the Loop Current is an ocean current that transports warm Caribbean water through the Yucatan Channel between Cuba and Mexico. The current flows northward into the Gulf of Mexico, then loops southeastward through the Florida Keys. The Loop Current commonly bulges out in the northern Gulf of Mexico and sometimes will shed a clockwise rotating ring of warm water that separates from the main current. This ring of warm water slowly drifts west-southwestward towards Texas or Mexico at about 3-5 km per day. This feature is called a "Loop Current Ring", "Loop Current Eddy", or "Warm Core Ring", and can provide a key source of energy to fuel rapid intensification of hurricanes that cross the Gulf. The Loop Current itself can also fuel rapid intensification, such as happened with Hurricane Charley in 2004. When a Loop Current Eddy breaks off in the Gulf of Mexico at the height of hurricane season, it can lead to a dangerous situation where a vast reservoir of energy is available to any hurricane that might cross over. This occurred in 2005, when a Loop Current Eddy separated in July, just before Hurricane Katrina passed over and "bombed" into a Category 5 hurricane. The eddy remained in the Gulf and slowly drifted westward during September. Hurricane Rita passed over the same Loop Current Eddy three weeks after Katrina, and also explosively deepened to a Category 5 storm.

This year, we had another Loop Current Eddy break off in July. This eddy is now positioned due south of New Orleans (Figure 2), and this eddy has similar levels of heat energy to the 2005 eddy that powered Katrina and Rita. Should Gustav pass over or just to the left of this eddy, we can expect the storm to significantly intensify. There is also a weaker eddy present in the western Gulf; this eddy broke off from the Loop Current in April, and is much cooler then the eddy that broke off in July. Should Gustav pass over the April eddy, it shouldn't make much difference.

It's too early to predict what's going to happen with this storm. But next week, the Republicans will gather in St. Paul, Minnesota, and they will spend a great deal of time talking about how we have to drill off of every coast in the country RIGHT NOW. You won't hear a lot about renewable fuels, but you will hear a lot about drilling.

But this week, while all the talk is about people named Barack and Michelle and Joe and Hillary and Bill, there's a fellow named Gustav churning around in the Caribbean. He's sleeping now, but he has the potential to get very, very mean when he gets angry.

Barack Obama isn't the president yet; George W. Bush is. And the people of the Gulf Coast know all too well what happens when a storm hits on George W. Bush's watch. Last time, John McCain posed with George W. Bush and a prop cake while people drowned and oil rigs toppled. Let's see him talk about drilling with a straight face.

You too, Bill.

Thank you, Bill:

Full text:

Wednesday Remarks at the Democratic Convention by President Clinton

I am honored to be here tonight to support Barack Obama. And to warm up the crowd for Joe Biden, though as you'll soon see, he doesn't need any help from me. I love Joe Biden, and America will too.

What a year we Democrats have had. The primary began with an all-star line up and came down to two remarkable Americans locked in a hard fought contest to the very end. The campaign generated so much heat it increased global warming.

In the end, my candidate didn't win. But I'm very proud of the campaign she ran: she never quit on the people she stood up for, on the changes she pushed for, on the future she wants for all our children. And I'm grateful for the chance Chelsea and I had to tell Americans about the person we know and love.

I'm not so grateful for the chance to speak in the wake of her magnificent address last night. But I'll do my best.

Hillary told us in no uncertain terms that she'll do everything she can to elect Barack Obama.

That makes two of us.

Actually that makes 18 million of us - because, like Hillary, I want all of you who supported her to vote for Barack Obama in November.

Here's why.

Our nation is in trouble on two fronts: The American Dream is under siege at home, and America's leadership in the world has been weakened.

Middle class and low-income Americans are hurting, with incomes declining; job losses, poverty and inequality rising; mortgage foreclosures and credit card debt increasing; health care coverage disappearing; and a big spike in the cost of food, utilities, and gasoline.

Our position in the world has been weakened by too much unilateralism and too little cooperation; a perilous dependence on imported oil; a refusal to lead on global warming; a growing indebtedness and a dependence on foreign lenders; a severely burdened military; a backsliding on global non- proliferation and arms control agreements; and a failure to consistently use the power of diplomacy, from the Middle East to Africa to Latin America to Central and Eastern Europe.

Clearly, the job of the next President is to rebuild the American Dream and restore America's standing in the world.

Everything I learned in my eight years as President and in the work I've done since, in America and across the globe, has convinced me that Barack Obama is the man for this job.

He has a remarkable ability to inspire people, to raise our hopes and rally us to high purpose. He has the intelligence and curiosity every successful President needs. His policies on the economy, taxes, health care and energy are far superior to the Republican alternatives. He has shown a clear grasp of our foreign policy and national security challenges, and a firm commitment to repair our badly strained military. His family heritage and life experiences have given him a unique capacity to lead our increasingly diverse nation and to restore our leadership in an ever more interdependent world. The long, hard primary tested and strengthened him. And in his first presidential decision, the selection of a running mate, he hit it out of the park.

With Joe Biden's experience and wisdom, supporting Barack Obama's proven understanding, insight, and good instincts, America will have the national security leadership we need.

Barack Obama is ready to lead America and restore American leadership in the world. Ready to preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States. Barack Obama is ready to be President of the United States.

He will work for an America with more partners and fewer adversaries. He will rebuild our frayed alliances and revitalize the international institutions which help to share the costs of the world's problems and to leverage our power and influence. He will put us back in the forefront of the world's fight to reduce nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons and to stop global warming. He will continue and enhance our nation's global leadership in an area in which I am deeply involved, the fight against AIDS, TB and malaria, including a renewal of the battle against HIV/AIDS here at home. He will choose diplomacy first and military force as a last resort. But in a world troubled by terror; by trafficking in weapons, drugs and people; by human rights abuses; by other threats to our security, our interests, and our values, when he cannot convert adversaries into partners, he will stand up to them.

Barack Obama also will not allow the world's problems to obscure its opportunities. Everywhere, in rich and poor countries alike, hardworking people need good jobs; secure, affordable healthcare, food, and energy; quality education for their children; and economically beneficial ways to fight global warming. These challenges cry out for American ideas and American innovation. When Barack Obama unleashes them, America will save lives, win new allies, open new markets, and create new jobs for our people.

Most important, Barack Obama knows that America cannot be strong abroad unless we are strong at home. People the world over have always been more impressed by the power of our example than by the example of our power.

Look at the example the Republicans have set: American workers have given us consistently rising productivity. They've worked harder and produced more. What did they get in return? Declining wages, less than 1/4 as many new jobs as in the previous eight years, smaller health care and pension benefits, rising poverty and the biggest increase in income inequality since the 1920s. American families by the millions are struggling with soaring health care costs and declining coverage. I will never forget the parents of children with autism and other severe conditions who told me on the campaign trail that they couldn't afford health care and couldn't qualify their kids for Medicaid unless they quit work or got a divorce. Are these the family values the Republicans are so proud of? What about the military families pushed to the breaking point by unprecedented multiple deployments? What about the assault on science and the defense of torture? What about the war on unions and the unlimited favors for the well connected? What about Katrina and cronyism?

America can do better than that. And Barack Obama will. But first we have to elect him. The choice is clear. The Republicans will nominate a good man who served our country heroically and suffered terribly in Vietnam. He loves our country every bit as much as we all do. As a Senator, he has shown his independence on several issues. But on the two great questions of this election, how to rebuild the American Dream and how to restore America's leadership in the world, he still embraces the extreme philosophy which has defined his party for more than 25 years, a philosophy we never had a real chance to see in action until 2001, when the Republicans finally gained control of both the White House and Congress. Then we saw what would happen to America if the policies they had talked about for decades were implemented.

They took us from record surpluses to an exploding national debt; from over 22 million new jobs down to 5 million; from an increase in working family incomes of $7,500 to a decline of more than $2,000; from almost 8 million Americans moving out of poverty to more than 5 and a half million falling into poverty - and millions more losing their health insurance.

Now, in spite of all the evidence, their candidate is promising more of the same: More tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans that will swell the deficit, increase inequality, and weaken the economy. More band-aids for health care that will enrich insurance companies, impoverish families and increase the number of uninsured. More going it alone in the world, instead of building the shared responsibilities and shared opportunities necessary to advance our security and restore our influence.

They actually want us to reward them for the last eight years by giving them four more. Let's send them a message that will echo from the Rockies all across America: Thanks, but no thanks. In this case, the third time is not the charm.

My fellow Democrats, sixteen years ago, you gave me the profound honor to lead our party to victory and to lead our nation to a new era of peace and broadly shared prosperity.

Together, we prevailed in a campaign in which the Republicans said I was too young and too inexperienced to be Commander-in-Chief. Sound familiar? It didn't work in 1992, because we were on the right side of history. And it won't work in 2008, because Barack Obama is on the right side of history.

His life is a 21st Century incarnation of the American Dream. His achievements are proof of our continuing progress toward the "more perfect union" of our founders' dreams. The values of freedom and equal opportunity which have given him his historic chance will drive him as president to give all Americans, regardless of race, religion, gender, sexual orientation or disability, their chance to build a decent life, and to show our humanity, as well as our strength, to the world.

We see that humanity, that strength, and our future in Barack and Michelle Obama and their beautiful children. We see them reinforced by the partnership with Joe Biden, his wife Jill, a dedicated teacher, and their family.

Barack Obama will lead us away from division and fear of the last eight years back to unity and hope. If, like me, you still believe America must always be a place called Hope, then join Hillary, Chelsea and me in making Senator Barack Obama the next President of the United States.

THIS is the Bill Clinton we've been wanting to see. THIS is the gifted Bill Clinton, the charismatic Bill Clinton, the one who is occasionally able to step outside his own need and his own narcissism to recognize that this process is bigger than himself and his own ego and his own bottomless pit of need for adulation and attention.

This has been a very classy night for Bill 'n' Hill. Now let's go out there and send these greedy, soulless wingnut bastards back to the Dark Ages in which they want ALL of us to live.

Next up: Blarney Joe Biden, whom I expect to tear the roof off the Pepsi Center.