Ali's Behind The Bed Again. I'm just going to let her stay there and keep the broom handy to sweep her out. She climbs up the headboard and makes noises. When I find her, she looks me in the eye until I try to catch her. Then she runs away. Wait until she gets hungry and thirsty. She can hold a lot of food in her cheeks, so it's going to take awhile.  ¶ 8:46 PM 0 comments

  Puppies For Obama. That is just too cute.  ¶ 7:32 PM 0 comments

  Play The Social Security Game.   ¶ 1:16 PM 0 comments

  Let's Do Lunch. Recently, a reporter asked Barack Obama which three people would Barack like to have lunch with the most. He replied: Jesus, Ghandi, and Lincoln. The people that I would like to have lunch with are: Mohandas Ghandi, Eldridge Cleaver, and Andrew Wiles. Then, I realized I didn't pick a woman (Obama didn't pick a black man or a woman.) So I rephrased the prompt to choose the people that I admire most today: Oprah Winfrey, Lawrence Lessig, and Al Gore. Then, I realized that I admire and I would also like to sit down and have lunch with Natalie Maines. That was a fun question.  ¶ 1:40 PM 0 comments

  Clinton Defends Electability. I've waited four years to see the electability issue debated without the opposite side being called a fringe element or worse. Hillary explains her position on electability perfectly.

Clinton, who recently fell behind Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., in a poll in Iowa -- site of the nation's first nominating contest -- is standing by relatively centrist and right-leaning views, including her recent Senate vote in favor of designating Iran's Revolutionary Guard as a terrorist organization, despite heavy criticism from Obama and other leading candidates, The Wall Street Journal reported Friday.

Aides said Clinton is reluctant to give up her positions for those popular with left-leaning voters for a number of reasons, including concern that Republicans would pounce on the issues during the general election race and fear of being stuck with insincere campaign promises if she makes it into office.

"If I do what you all want me to do, I'll look great for the next couple months," a Clinton insider quoted the candidate as saying recently when pressured to move to the left on an issue. "But what if I'm the nominee? I'll be ripped apart by the Republicans. And what if I'm the president? My hands will be tied."

Seems to me we've heard this song before. Who remembers the great hope of the democratic party, John Kerry? As an "anyone but Hillary" supporter, I don't think I'm part of a fringe element at all. I think I speak for many Democrats when I say that we are not pinos and Nadarites. We're just stating the obvious, "We won't get fooled again."

Hillary has maxed out her support. Consider this, her support comes from the centrist wing of the Democratic Party. heh.  ¶ 9:32 AM 0 comments

  I Thought I Had Killed My Other Hamster. I gave Ali a bath today. Afterwards, I googled hamster care and found out that you should never, ever bathe a hamster. I've been watching Ali all day like a hawk. She spent the day sleeping as hamsters like to do. I couldn't get her to wake up and play. Well, she just woke me up with her exercise wheel. It sounds like she's playing the maracas in slow motion. Usually when she takes all her food up into the exercise wheel, I take her out of the wheel. Then, I make her go through a maze while I empty out the food. Tonight, the noise she's making is music to my ears. Thank goodness! I can finally turn on the air conditioner.

If you click on the link, you'll find that a rodent for president is not such a bad idea. Hey guys, Ali would make a great secretary of state.  ¶ 2:45 AM 0 comments

  The Government Is FUBARED. Happy Thanksgiving and may God Bless America and Her Brave Men and Women in Uniform. I'm going to puke my guts out now.  ¶ 1:28 PM 0 comments

  Where's Waldo? I'm thinking of Holylands and happier times with "Waldo." He comes by at night and leaves little signs. I have no idea where he is.  ¶ 7:40 PM 0 comments

  Isn't This Neat? And the links still work. I was deleting all my drafts and found this comment (I don't get too many of them) attached to an old post. I hOpe Will hasn't changed his mind.

I haven't found Alvinia yet. I think she's behind my headboard. I hear little scratching noises. I miss her, and Theodora has not crawled out of her little nest since Alvinia left.Obama's smile touches my heart. I pray that the young people who support him will vote.

Will Gattis of Portland said that when he came to the rally he "really wanted Obama to win." Now, says Gattis, he has "got to win."

You can catch the video here. Warning. You'll have to sit through a McDonald's commercial first, and the clip is only a taste.  ¶ 5:58 PM 1 comments

  Obama's Novela.


que se llama, La Marcha (Episode 1: Tu Voz, Tu Voto.) No esta tan mal. Unlike soap operas, novelas have a beginning and an end. I hOpe Obama's novela has a happy ending.  ¶ 1:30 PM 0 comments

  Sirota vs Clinton


David vs Goliath?  ¶ 1:07 PM 0 comments

  Debate Hangover. I don't think that Hillary won the debate. She started out stronger than dirt and finished weak ... not weak as molasses, but weak, nonetheless. She didn't answer the questions that undecided voters have about whether or not her commitment to ending the war in Iraq is real. It'll be interesting to see the effect in the Iowa and New Hampshire polls. I have no sour grapes about the Clinton News Network. As Nancy Pelosi said, "The best preparation for combat is combat." I could hardly wish for a better account of last night's debacle than this, straight from America's heartland.

P.S. Seymour Hersh: Obama "The Only Hope" for US-Muslim Ties.  ¶ 11:26 AM 0 comments

  Free Rice. No, not for you. It's a vocabulary game. The site sends it's proceeds to feed the hungry. I just found out about it last night and I'm already addicted. Improve your vocabulary, feed the hungry. It's a win win situation.
  ¶ 10:22 AM 0 comments

  Hillary Doesn't Get It. The whole idea of a question and answer period is to answer your potential supporters' questions, not to spew talking points. It's all I can do to keep the rest of my commentary to myself.

I tried. Really I did. However, I am just too bored not to be entertained by tasteless photo(shops) ...






  ¶ 12:37 PM 0 comments

  Still Undecided In NH. There's been much talk about Hillary's lead slipping. I think that the undecided factor is more significant. Only 24% of Democrats say that they have "definitely decided" to support a particular candidate.  ¶ 8:13 AM 0 comments

  What Would Do Jesus Do? Florida can no longer be called Bush country. 68% of Floridians believe that the country is on the wrong track. The study is fascinating. Personally, I like Charlie Crist, so maybe there's a trend of unity taking place here .... well except for church going "blood-curdlers." As a parent and a pagan, I am dumbfounded.

But the poll shows that voters are more evenly divided over the possibility of Bush using military action to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons. Forty-nine percent said they would oppose such an event; 43 percent said they would support the move. Support was highest among those who said they attend church ''very frequently'' or identified themselves as born-again Christians.

Conway noted that parents were more likely than nonparents to back military action against Iran, and ``as far as religion goes, those who attended church frequently were much more blood-curdlers.

Happy Veteran's Day. Bush isn't attending the traditional Veteran's Day ceremony at Arlington Cemetary. He's sending Cheney instead. The Fox announcer just reported the news. It was surreal.  ¶ 6:06 AM 0 comments

  Before and after interviews in Iowa With Barack Obama. He did get the soft treatment from the two journalists, and, therefore, was able to articulate his responses to his critics. Personally, I just don't understand why Democrats aren't rallying behind him more than they are. He "gets it" ... especially the urgency of getting the troops out of Iraq, the Constitutional crisis, and the restoration of progressive values. If one dismisses his rhetoric with campaign promises, well, that goes without saying for all the candidates. Shouldn't we just pick the one who is the most forceful?

His deliberate style doesn't strike me as too intellectual. He simply makes controversial decisions dispassionately. He is passionate about his beliefs and then goes to work to get the jobs done. I feel safer with a guy who never loses his cool, except when he's fired up and ready to go.

BTW, did you know that GWB has a 9% approval rating among black males? Now I know why I'm seeing the young black males in crowds filmed in Obama's photos and videos. Bo has got to win over the women.  ¶ 5:28 PM 0 comments

  Read At Your Own Risk. My isp is ATT. The mouse click that just got you to my blog has just caused your computer records to be beamed into an NSA secret spy room. Have you seen the President's Analyst? The phone company has always spied on us. If you lived through the Nixon, Reagan, BushI, BushII years, you'd have a tin hat in your closet, too.  ¶ 3:11 PM 0 comments

  Meet The Press. How in the world did Obama wake up looking so good, this morning? The guy is a regular Energizer Bunny. He was fired up last night and ready to go today. I was so tired from just watching the JJ Dinner, that I slept through the show.   ¶ 1:18 PM 0 comments

  Live Blogging The Jefferson Jackson Dinner In Iowa. The crowd is going crazy. No one group can get its voice heard. It's just one big noisy scene. The candidates are being introduced. It isn't as noisy as I thought it would be for Hillary, but it's building. Obama is rocking the house! He sure can take his sweet time getting up to the stage. The first announcer just made a reference to patriotism not being a lapel pin, then led the pledge of allegiance. Obama put his hand over his heart. It looks like that issue has been put to rest.

Well, I fell asleep. Edwards woke me up. He's stronger than dirt. Did Edwards just say that the politicians that would deny other Americans health coverage, will get their coverage taken away? Now, he's turning his lawyer background into a plus. Just like he did as a lawyer, he'll give corporate America hell. He has me believing him. "Trust your heart," is his closing line. I like that. He finishes, the cheap loud speaker plays U2 - In the Name of Love ... one of my favorite songs.

That loudspeaker must die.

Bill Richardson is up. I'm looking forward to listening to the second-tier candidates. That's what makes Iowa so special. Bill Richardson is a player. He's saying that the Democratic contenders should "play nice." I focused right in on his suit .... it fits ... well ... better than usual. When I met him, his suit was too tight in the wrong places, too loose in the wrong places, too wrinkled everywhere. It still looks a half size too small. Enough said.

Joe Biden says that America needs a president, not one who they can trust, but one who has the experience to lead. I must have heard him wrong. Now, he's babbling about poetry and Hillary.

The auction. Leonard Boswell is fun. Nancy Pelosi is so cute. She looks like she is having a good time. The scarf, that belongs to her ... only she's never seen it, never even worn it before, is going for a very cool 6 grand. Our JJ dinner has a raffle instead of an auction. I once won a football signed by Dan Marino.

Chris Dodd is getting loud applause. They like him in Iowa. Me too. Fritzmas. Heh. Candidates on a stick. Heh, heh. Now, he goes straight to his message, to protect the Constitution and defend America. He is blasting Bush better than anyone. He's promising that we will get our Constitution back. He gets the audience on their feet for the veterans. He's the only candidate who has served in the military. He says that we need a leader to bring this country together, to make sound judgements. He wrote the Family Medical Leave Act. Lord, I wish he could be president.

Tom Harkin ....the Americans with Disabilies act, The Human Rights amendment.. those are tremendous accomplishments. Hillary's up now. The horn tooter is a Hillary supporter. I thought so. I didn't notice any named legislation that was associated with her, but the horn is tooting away. It looks like Hillary is playing the sex card again ... next year, she'll be sworn into office by Nancy Pelosi, indeed. Clinton is awful. Change is just a word, but you need the experience to make it happen, starting on day 1. She knows what it takes to win, and she will work every day to "make a difference." She's going defensive about health care, polls, where she stands on the issues. Yuck. Poor little Hillary. Next, a story about a dead invisible woman, and Hillary promises to wake up everyday and fight for us. She says it's going to get even hotter. And she feels comfortable in the kitchen. She doesn't feel comfortable attacking democrats, even though she plays the experience and sex card. She's comfortable attacking the Republicans. IMO, it's not working. How many times do we need to be told just how electable she is. After all Ted Strickland, right here in the audience, is endorsing her. (Remember who Harkin endorsed four years ago?) Stand for her and she will stand for you.

Obama's next. What is that beautiful read sign in the back that says OBAMA? His ethics and reform bill is a good accomplishment for Nancy to refer to in her introduction. It leads right into one of the themes of his speech. Nancy has to scream to say his name above the crowd. He sure is taking his sweet time again to work the crowds. He's hitting the lobbyists, telling us why he is in this race. Hitting the people who vote like GB republicans. He's pointing out that the Republicans won't have the ammunition on him about Iraq, Iran. He'll get the troops out in 16 months, he'll restore habeas corpus, he'll close Guantanamo. Does he write his own speeches? He has the line of the night. I don't want to be president of red/blue America, I want to be the president of the United States of America. Quoting MTK, the fear of urgency. Jobs for the jobless, hope for the hopeless. He's there because of one person who stood up for him, then more stood up then more stood up for him. He's running for the people who still dream and he's asking us to stand for him too. Edwards and Obama had the best speeches. At the end, Obama gets the most applause, hands down.  ¶ 8:43 PM 0 comments