Welcome to The Now

Let's just call them the " Ron Paul PUMAs ." I doubt Ann Coulter will stop with the "B. Hussein" thing . Just ignore her, or go after her policies like Ms. Edwards did (I still remember Coulter squirming during that exchange). Mars hoax ? Not really surprising, to be honest. The number of Republican women who got passed over for Gov. Palin will make some GOP members very angry. And this ad is exactly the tone Sen. Obama needs to use in the wake of the McCain VP pick:

I rarely do weekend version of this, but what the hey: Here's a shock: college students drink . While celebrating Congresswoman Tubbs , Democrats gather and rally. Gov. Plain gets love from Congressional Republicans but shudders from local Alaskans . This time New Orleans isn't waiting on President Bush or FEMA. The Terps win, but not big , which means they're in for some trouble (it was against Delaware, for Pete's sake).

Tina Fey will host SNL this season early, and often. " Murderball ," commenting on Gov. Palin's "shredding" of Kudlow .

Honestly, John McCain's people convinced him to choose Palin over M. Jodi Rell ? Really? Yikes. UPDATE : Poorman reacts . More laughter to ensue.

But Sadly No! sums up the Palin pick better than I did.

So J-Mac choose Gov. Sarah Palin to run with him against the duo of Obama and Biden. A surprise , to be sure, but then there are some things to consider: It will be hard for John McCain to explain how Barack Obama is not qualified to be president when McCain has selected a person who has barely two years of executive experience to be his "What If" replacement. Especially considering that her state, while big in size, is not big in population. People who wanted Hillary Clinton to be president because they wanted Hillary to be president will not be persuaded by this choice to vote for McCain. People who wanted Hillary Clinton to be president because they supported her issues will not be persuaded by this choice to vote for McCain. Much like Joe Biden addresses/reveals Obama's lack of foreign policy experience, Palin addresses/reveals McCain's lack of youth . Unlike Obama choosing Biden, it's hard to say that McCain had much input in choosing Palin...this reeks of th...

...especially people like Charles Babington .

Maybe this time we'll see more of them together.

Vladimir Putin makes a serious and quasi-believable claim regarding the Georgia conflict. Who knew David Duchovny was a sex addict ? Other than fans of "Red Shoe Diaries," that is. What the blue hell was Eric Michael Dyson thinking? It's those type of comments that pissed off Hillary Clinton supporters (not to mention women in general). In case you were living under a rock, Sen. Barack Obama gave a kick-ass acceptance speech last night.

Yay! Uh...wait; what ? The top Marine Corps general said yesterday that the U.S. military will hand over security responsibilities to Iraqi forces next week in Iraq's western province of Anbar, paving the way to reduce the 25,000-strong Marine contingent there and free up more Marines to go to Afghanistan. The Marine Corps Commandant, Gen. James T. Conway, said Anbar no longer requires such a large number of Marines, who would be better employed fighting in Afghanistan, where he said the Taliban insurgency is "growing bolder." "I do know that 25,000 Marines in a province, again, are probably in excess of the need, especially after Iraqi provincial control assumes responsibilities for security," Conway told a media roundtable at the Pentagon. More over at Crooks & Liars .

Looks like the Republican Convention will showcase John McCain's true maverick-ness...oh wait, no it won't .

Crooks & Liar's bluegal takes it to Joey Scarborough over bloggers . Oliver Willis has done a superb job showing us the insides of the Democratic Convention. Over at Pottersville, not everyone's convinced that the Democratic Convention has fully embraced liberalism... ...Of course, Gavin M. from Sadly, No! notes that on the other side of the spectrum, conservatives see the events of the convention as the beginning of the end. And just to break the monotony: things millionaires won't tell you .

As Think Progress notes, Rove wasn't too happy that John McCain was considering his BFF Joe Lieberman and may have done something to derail that plan. In the VP debate, Joe Biden will show Mitt Romney no mercy; can't say the same about Lieberman. But Rove could care less about debates.

Just sayin' .

I agree with Josh Marshall , (no not the " impostor ", the real one): it was John Kerry:

Floods in India leave millions homeless . Whither the New York Yankees ? All About Russia (I don't think the "Bankrupt you via the Cold War" or the "Bully you With Threats of Attack" will work this time) This news may make the stem cell argument a moot point. Preparations are underway for Barack Obama's acceptance speech at Mile High Stadium.

Here's some (more) proof .

Keep in mind that both cable networks saw the same exact speech on Monday night: Now you tell me, which cable network seemed like they came into this thing with a relative clean slate of expectations, and which one seemed like they where harboring some biases and prejudices beforehand?

For example: The Taliban bomber calmly parked a white fuel tanker near the prison gates of this city one evening in June, then jumped down from the cab and let out a laugh. Prison guards fired on the bomber as he ran off, but they missed, instead killing the son of a local shopkeeper, Muhammad Daoud, who watched the scene unfold from across the street. Seconds later, the Taliban fired a rocket-propelled grenade into the tanker, setting off an explosion that killed the prison guards, destroyed nearby buildings, and opened a breach in the prison walls as wide as a highway. Nearly 900 prisoners escaped, 350 of them members of the Taliban, in one of the worst security lapses in Afghanistan in the six years since the United States intervention here. The prison break, on June 13, was a spectacular propaganda coup for the Taliban not only in freeing their comrades and flaunting their strength, but also in exposing the catastrophic weakness of the Afghan government, its army and the police, as...

Sad but true ; because we can't have too much change, ya know?

While I agree that people like Michele Obama, Ted Kennedy, and Hillary Clinton gave great speeches, I think the "Unsungs" (aka, people who didn't make it to prime time of mainstream media reviews) like (from Day One) Republican Rep. Jim Leach and (from Day Two) Democratic Rep. Dennis Kucinich deserve some praise as well. Both have their qualms with the Bush Administration and the current state of the Republican Party, but deliver it in different ways. Undecided voters (they still exist?) and disenfranchised Republicans should take note of both. The one thing I'll say that *shudder* "needs to be done" is for speakers to effectively switch between articulating the policy differences they have with the GOP and invoking the emotion and passion party members need during this rough campaign season. Once you hear the pundits alternate between saying Speaker X "didn't give alot of detail" and saying that speaker Y "didn't seem to have their h...

Hillary Clinton makes her case and leaves no doubt about her support for Barack Obama, Joe Biden, and the Democratic Party. For those looking for Convention Drama, here's a story about some real hijackers . Haiti vs. Gustav . I see Broadway accolades . N. Korea joins the Axis of Countries President Bush Has Pissed Off. People of faith aren't leaving the Democratic Party, but they're not staying silent either. If John McCain can't beat Madonna , how can he beat Obama? See, FoxNews? I can pose silly questions too! Ted Stevens is determined to keep his reign of corruption going .

Yeah, I'm going there, because if John McCain's blue blanket (think Linus from The Peanuts) is going to be "I was a prisoner/I was held against my will" and he's going to use that every time he gets cornered (whether by Barack Obama or freakin' Jay Leno ) then I'm invoking the Joe Biden Principle. Every time he uses the POW argument, he becomes more like Rudy Giuliani.

Oliver Willis has gone over this , but I wanted to expand on the story about some Black people who believe that an Obama Administration would set African-Americans back . Quite frankly, these guys remind me of the people on the Right who constantly push passing abortion laws. Just how did that go during the five or six years when Republicans were able to pass virtually anything they wanted? Nowhere. If abortion was a real issue and not a "read meat" one, President Bush would have signed something before the 2006 mid-term elections. It wasn't seriously considered because the GOP knew that if that was taken off the "checklist" it would be one less issue to use as a rallying cry (hence the insipid "Barack Obama wanted to kill newborns when he was in Illinois" meme). In a similar fashion, there are Prominent Black People (they're typically the ones who are called on the talk shows to tell the Scared White People what "Black America" is thinki...

Types of Office Gossips . Perrspectives takes a look at Joe Biden . Daveawayfromhome reminds us how out-dated the polling system is. This Oliver Willis post highlights why FoxNews was essentially banned by the Democrats during this election cycle. Michael Moore doesn't know quit . And that's a good thing. "In Other Words" Eric Boehlert : Hillary Clinton's appearance and speaking at the Democratic Convention should be enough to convince the media that she is behind Barack Obama and her so-called "supporters" who claim to be bitter are really wackos, but I keep forgetting that our modern-day journalists are lazy, story-desperate slugs who don't know or care about recent political history . Sorry Rush; we're not a conservative nation .

Ted Kennedy: inspirational . The Obama Family: unbelievable . Dick Cheney: absent . Democratic Party: fighting .

What else would explain to the " outrage " of being mocked by Madonna? And excuse me, but didn't McCain run ads comparing Barack Obama to Paris Hilton/Britney Spears and than Moses ? And excuse me again, but this is supposed to be worse than when the Karl Rove-backed Bush 43 campaign went through the South claiming that McCain conceived a black baby out of wedlock (they were referring to his adopted daughter from Bangladesh)?

As if hanging with Tim Burton is macabre enough: this happens . People make fake pictures for fame, fun and profit ? Oh, noes! Seriously, was this even an issue before the Average Joe had access to Photoshop? Barack Obama prepares to (re-)introduce himself to the American public...and everyone has an opinion on how he should do that .

50 is the new ...something. And you thought your pre-nup was crazy . The Right's Five Most Hilariously Boneheaded Anti-Obama Smears . Phillip Butler: Why I Will Not Vote for John McCain . The questions in Saddleback seemed to have leaned more to the religious side when it came to Barack Obama, whereas most of John McCain's questions were relatively religous-free. Even denim isn't immune to good fashion sense . John McCain doesn't want you to see this .

A few things I found around the 'Nets concerning the newly chosen VP Joe Biden: Kos may not be exactly jumping for joy over the choice, but that doesn't mean that the rest of the Daily Kos community feels the same. In fact, one noted member has a video collection of key Biden moments . Howard Fineman calls Biden " the anti-Dick Cheney ," and with good reason. A member of Democratic Underground has a great list of Biden facts . Oliver Willis reminds us that Biden had a role in keeping our Supreme Court (somewhat) clinically sane . Now I've had my own comments on Biden recently and in the past, but I'll go over those later...

Lower Drinking Age Is Criticized . On Campus, Legal Drinking Age Is Flunking the Reality Test .

...as Tom Tomorrow illustrates .

John McCain's Housing Crisis grows ...or does it ? Miley Cyrus will celebrate her 16th birthday at Disneyland . Hope this doesn't end like Lindsay Lohan's romp. Call it, " Law & Order: Library's Unit ." Remember: The Surge Was a Success !

...and that's the story: he's picked someone . Who? Don't know; we'll find out soon. Although I personally think that choosing this guy would cause shock waves .

I will not stand by and watch the Obama camp try to claim McCain owns seven homes when he owns at least ten. -- Josh Marshall . For some background, go here .

He was one of the first Senators to denounce then-President Bill Clinton during the wake of the Monica Lewinsky Affair. Al Gore chose him as a running mate for the 2000 Presidential election to match then-Governor George W. Bush and Dick Cheney. Upon losing that contest, he went back to his job as US Senator from Connecticut. His moderate tone and demeanor was praised even in defeat. Then America experienced the horror of 9/11/01, and this man seemed to change right in front of our eyes. Suddenly, the GOP, not his own party, was the group best equipped to combat terrorism. Suddenly, nation-building and pre-emptive strikes were necessary. Sure, many other Democrats had supported variations of these things, but as the occupation of Iraq and the constant shifting between winning in Afghanistan to Taliban resurgence to winning again took their toll a large number of those Democrats experienced a change of heart. It also didn't help to learn that American soldiers were abusing prisoners...

People who don't want to bother to go to either Barack Obama's or John McCain's website and read their economic plans and learn more about them . It's not that they're stupid; they have just been ignored to the point of becoming apathetic to politics and now they expect a candidate to make them swoon. I don't know what's more amazing: that Chris Kattan married a model , that her name is " Sunshine ," or that they are now separated after two months . FEMA tries to make everyone forget that "Katrina thing" by letting their phones get hacked .

Four years ago, maybe somebody like Corsi would have been able to get away with a smear book (in fact, it was Corsi and his Swift Boat buddies who attacked John Kerry). But things have thankfully changed: Eric Boehlert on Corsi's inability to let go of past tactics and his sensitivity to actual vetting . Boston Globe has story that shows why Corsi should not be trusted, and it has nothing to do with Barack Obama. These are just two examples of what the press needs to do when someone comes out with a book that's determined to tear an individual down: vet them. After all, it's that what FoxNews wanted for Scott McClellan when he wrote his book (which, compared to Corsi's was far from being a smear book)? There's a saying, "Don't shoot the messenger." But I strongly believe that the "messenger" in that quote was traditionally thought to be neutral and/or impartial. Corsi is neither.

Gee , maybe that's why people came up with the term. But then again, it was English scientists who felt compelled to confirm this, not American ones.

...is that they had a hissy-fit over moving towards a five-day work week yet now have no problem with holding these inane "energy policy protests." Back then one of the jokers who was actually working like, well, regular Americans claimed that by working five days a week, the Democrats were keeping Congress away from their families...which automatically made them anti-family. If that's the case, isn't using your vacation time to whine about not being allowed to drill for oil worse ?

The Surge hasn't worked for the French . Something tells me that deep down Vanessa Hudgens isn't freaking out over stuff like this , considering that her career almost got derailed. Sure, we can put the Bush Legacy to technology ; anyone have an old floppy disk? I know; they'll still be alot of space left over, but it's for a good cause. Meet the new World's Tallest Man, who was the old World's Tallest Man . Meanwhile, over in Afghanistan ... So, if the incredible Hulk didn't have a wide face, he wouldn't be so mean ?

Secretary Rice sure hasn't .

"Your job's a joke/your broke/ your love life's DOA ." One in two Americans think we're still using Old Testament medicine . I wonder how the numbers would look with Universal Health care; I believe the reason more people are praying to God is because they've exhausted all other worldly options, not because God was their first choice (or because of their faith). “ Whether I win or lose the impeachment, the nation will lose ." So said Richard Nixon...er, I mean ex-Pakistani President Musharraf . When you consider that China's the hosting country and they're trying to shed the "We're An Evil Communist Government" label, you can't really be surprised that they're leading in Olympic gold . Christina Applegate is gonna be OK .

Thought so: The Bush Administration played the role of spectator as the Georgia/Russia tensions came to a head. Can't have WWIII if you're trying to squash beefs, right? Reconciling Mao . Bye-bye, Mushy . If this is what coaches get from winning Super Bowls, they can keep it.

Some reasons women cheat on men. Did Jennifer Love Hewitt slim down because she wanted to, or because of the (unwarrented) cracks she was getting from TMZ? Defeat-happy Democrats? Michael Moore is gonna save you some time . Yes; twin babies of different skin tones happens . It's called "genetics." Ernest Partridge from Democratic Underground warns Democrats and liberals that a big turnout is the only way Obama wins.

Forget what I said before: there more Olympic drama going on here than I ever remember before (no wonder NBC picked it up; they love controversy ). In addition to the stuff I've mentioned before: there's a question as to whether the Chinese gymnast meets the age requirement , and there's yet another photo of people from Spain making not-so-PC-gestures . I thought this was about competition and the messing of different cultures and stuff. Go figure.

I pretty much agree with this movie review of "Tropic Thunder," even though I'd say it was funnier than the writer says. And for those who hate movie-inspired quotes, keep an ear out for "I'm a lead farmer, muthafucka!" You've been warned.

For those who are wondering (or care) JP isn't gone , he just moved . As soon as I have the time, I shall update the blogroll.

...But is Exxon/Mobil sponsoring the Democratic and Republican conventions on three major media outlets a good thing?

Making fun of the PUMA-people may be fun , but I'm sure Al Gore supporters in 2000 saw Ralph Nader people the same way (and how Bush 41 supporters saw Ross Perot). Mock them if you must, but keep an eye on them.

...smearing and lying about Barack Obama and then claiming to be an impartial news network. Riiiiight. Good thing there a people willing and able to catch the lies and fight the smears:

So now with all this saber-rattling and bed-wetting over Russia's attempt to handle their own problems, the question has essentially become, " Is Russia evil again ?" like Russia was a vampire cursed with a soul and suddenly lost it or something. Nevermind that President Bush was the catalyst that set off this series of unfortunate events . Or that John McCain is making power moves which , if done by Barack Obama, would have set off a fire storm from conservatives. Or that this mess gives the Bush Administration an excuse to push for their crappy missile defense system , something that: Is far from the implementation stage so it has no immediate benefits; Was proposed before 9-11 but was dropped when bin Laden became the new Big Bad; and Was proposed as a deterrent against Iran, but dropped because Iran doesn't have long-range missiles. No, forget all of that. The Klingons...I mean, Russians are back! The Bear has awoken! Time to fight the commies! Oh wait...the ...

...blame John McCain; after all, he " invented " it.

Very interesting story here on how some Obama supporters/volunteers are facing resistance from the establishment . One the one side, no one said change was easy ("Crashing the Gate" anyone?). One the other: people should know their are/district/ward/county/state before they go running for office and shouting, "Change! Change! Change!" Like most things in life, there's a happy medium somewhere. Hope the experience doesn't squash the youngster's dreams, though.

Protesters (dressed like Peter Pan and Snow White) were arrested outside of Disneyland yesterday .

... Tennis stars start getting hostile . Yikes.

In America, this story would have been a scene in a Farrelly Brothers movie. Sorry, Harry Potter fans: the "Half-Blood Prince" is being moved to a summer release . Guess we need another Rachel Leigh Cook drug commercial. A whole new (under)world. Christian Bale will not face assault charges . Evangelicals apparently aren't the hard-core Republicans they used to be .

If this is true, then I'm prepared to take this back . Voting is the one power the people still have, and for Hillary Clinton, her superdelegate vote will double as a sign to her supporters.

He goes up against a guy from Media Matters and tries to defend his Barack Obama smear book: Funny how outlets like FoxNews painted former Press Secretary Scott McClellan as someone trying to make a buck selling books, yet treat Corsi as someone trying to inform the public. UPDATE: Crooks & Liars has more . UBER-UPDATE: Via Daily Kos , Camp Obama has a rebuttal for Mr. Corsi. I think that for any future shows, if the host can't say, "Have you seen Sen. Obama's response, Mr. Corsi?" than Corsi should be dragged away.

Think Progress has more .

OK : Swedish wrestler Ara Abrahamian threw down his greco -roman bronze medal in protest on Thursday after his bid for Olympic gold was ended by a decision denounced by the Swedish coach as “politics.” Abrahamian took the bronze from around his neck during the medal ceremony, stepped from the podium and dropped it in the middle of the wrestling mat then walked off. “I don’t care about this medal. I wanted gold,” he said. A bitter Abrahamian , silver medalist at Athens 2004 who had high hopes of top honors in the 84kg competition in Beijing, announced he was quitting the sport. “This will be my last match. I wanted to take gold, so I consider this Olympics a failure,” he said. Something tells me that if he had this type of intensity during his match, he may have gotten the Gold.

One more reason to keep an eye on the Cavs (but do they really think this will get them past Boston?) You'd never believe who was a part of the Office of Strategic Services. Cindy McCain takes the handshake meant for her husband, or something. R.I.P.: Cindy Allen . George W. Bush doesn't think Russia should be invading another country unprovoked. Another opportunity for Virginia Democrats. Good idea ; this way Kerry doesn't have to worry about making off-the-cuff comments.

Not in a dirty way , perverts: “Well, I actually did pitch a ‘Batman’ film when [Warner Bros. began developing "Batman Begins"], and it wasn’t what they did but the vibe was very similar,” said Whedon. “Mine was a bit less epic. It was more about the progression of him and it was more in Gotham City. He didn’t go to Tibet and meet cool people, but it was very similar in vibe [to Nolan's "Batman Begins"].” I'm kinda torn on this. No doubt Whedon could pull off a dark Batman, but I get the feeling that he'd end of swimming in snark-infested waters. And do we really want the Joker to say, "Don't wig out?" or "I'm five-by-five?" Besides, I like Christopher Nolan's more international take; it fit more with some background stories that had Bruce Wayne traveling around the world (and not just Gotham City) in order to find the right ways to combat crime. I will say that I'd eagerly await a Whedon-scribed Wonder Woman movie...o...

Look at this... he's holding the flag the wrong way ! Does Bush really love America? Has he been lying to us all this time ? Wasn't his grandfather a Nazi-sympathizer ? TRAITOR!!! (If you thought the following rant was silly, then you probably could also care less that Barack Obama has been accused of not wearing a flag pin. Which makes you a rationale human being. Good on ya!)

...the "ugly" will inherit the earth .

It may have taken some time, but the NBA player from Spain realises that his team made a non-funny gesture . Let's put it this way: if the Olympics were in Spain, the Chinese basketball team did a photo op dressed like Flamenco dancers , I think Gasol and his teammates would "get it" even better.

I guess I would be too, if my home was on display at a museum .

They may be selling solar panels soon . Wow.

Keep in mind that this woman's specialty is Russian affairs: U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, speaking after telephone consultations with big-power foreign ministers, said there has been progress in European mediation efforts on the Russia-Georgia conflict. Rice said Moscow must abide by its stated promise to halt military operations. VOA's David Gollust reports from the State Department. Rice is welcoming the apparent progress in the French-led mediation effort with Russia and Georgia but says further steps to defuse the crisis depend on the warring parties making good on their stated intention to cease hostilities. Rice, speaking at the White House after meeting President Bush, said she and fellow foreign ministers of the G7 Industrial powers had been given a telephone briefing from French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner on the mission to Moscow by French President Nikolas Sarkozy." They believe that they made have made some progress and we welcome that, we we...

They replace Tom Cruise with her . As the title character. Tom Cruise is a guy. They're re-writing the movie for the change.

No; seriously . Scientists say they are a step closer to developing materials that could render people and objects invisible. Researchers have demonstrated for the first time that they were able to cloak three-dimensional objects using artificially engineered materials that redirect light around the objects. Previously, they only have been able to cloak very thin two-dimensional objects. The findings, by scientists at the University of California, Berkeley, led by Xiang Zhang, are to be released later this week in the journals Nature and Science. I think I'll use my PlayStation 3/I-Phone money on this instead.

If you said Paris Hilton and Stan Lee , you win the cookie.

One of seven burning questions regarding the new Star Wars movie. Quick hands: who else thought that Episodes One-through-Three should have done this way? Anyone?

Dare I say this was one person Texas needed to have on Death Row? First the story of the "exaggerated" fireworks at the Olympics, now this ? Seriously: was anything real in that opening ceremony? Are people really competing now? Let's call it " blame transference :" people have blamed the Clintons for so much crap that the Clintons, in turn, have taken to blaming others for their screwups . The 40-Year-Old...murderer ? "I call Judd Apatow to the witness stand." Way cool: cops are using GPS devices to catch criminals . " The aggressor has been punished ." Um, yeah; that'll teach 'em to be democratic. D.C. is setting up what looks to be an awesome bike rental program .

Your supporters demanding for a roll-cal l is one thing. This ad from the Denver Group comparing the upcoming Democratic Convention to the Boston Tea Party made me twitch, but I still decided to hold my tongue. But Howard Wolfson talking out of his ass was the Third Strike for me. And with this third occurrence, I see a disturbing pattern. I see a pattern of Hillary Clinton supporters willing to wreck havoc, willing to cripple the Democratic Party, just so you can sneak in and "save it." I see the worst example of True Believers, and a candidate who -despite claiming that she would be ready to lead from "Day One"- seems unable to control her most ardent supporters. I hate to say this, but a true leader would not let any of these spectacles become news items. Ms. Clinton, you're lucky that the political news is about John Edwards' admission, Barack Obama's vacation and John McCain's latest ad (or whatever he's doing). Quite frankly, you shouldn...

Michael Phelps is almost there . Marriage = healthy ? Who knew? WWIII may have to wait . Musharraf is having a George Bush of a time with his fellow Pakistanis. James Bond writers couldn't make this woman up. Mostly because their women tend to be eye-candy, not terrorists. Running slows the aging process ? Who knew?

It seems that one strategy in the "War on Terror" is to basically buy hearts and minds : Army documents show that $48,000 was spent on 6,000 pairs of children's shoes; an additional $50,000 bought 625 sheep for people described in records as "starving poor locals" in a Baghdad neighborhood. Soldiers ordered $100,000 worth of dolls and $500,000 in action figures made to look like Iraqi Security Forces. About $14,250 was spent on "I Love Iraq" T-shirts. More than $75,000 sent a delegation to a women's and civil rights conference in Cairo. And $12,800 was spent for two pools to cool bears and tigers at Zawra Park Zoo in Baghdad. "$" as in "tax-payer dollars." Some of this stuff isn't that bad, but when I see that someone actually thought an "I Love Iraq" T-Shirt would help spread democracy and goodwill, I flinch. So to recap our adventure in Iraq: Using the military to effect change: fun for neoconservatives, but not...

...but for a Presidential candidate to jack Wikipedia entries is just lazy. Not necessarily wrong, but lazy.

... thanks to theRoot.com's explainer Afi-Odelia E. Scruggs.

Jewell gets married . Sigh. This sounds like a decent program, so I hope and pray that these guys don't get "Ohio'd." R.I.P., Bernie Mac . Yao Ming's not exactly the Top dog in China (when compared to some American NBA players. The Klingons...er, the Russians are back . R.I.P., Issac Hayes .

What's the deal with Batman's voice ? Childbirth isn't what TV makes it out to be . daveawayfromhome: I feel your pain . Croc-haters . Something every "fiscal conservative" should look at. Dating mistakes men and women make. America's fastest dying cities .

She'll get to do what she does best : attack the shit out of her opponents. And hopefully this will curb the stupid "Hillary will never, ever support Obama" meme.

"... but the kid is not his son ..." er, daughter . Oh noes! the Democrats are done! How can they ever recover...what? He's not the Democratic candidate for President? Oh, OK then. H/t: OW . P.S. What is up with the Democratic VP candidates? You have Al Gore (the smartest, most qualified guy to ever lose a bid for president), Joe "Count Dooku" Lieberman, and now Edwards (who, if you believe John Kerry, wasn't exactly Captain Honesty). I don't want to jinx Obama's pick because of this, but Dem VPs seem to be like Hogwart's Defense Against the Dark Arts teachers.

They play defense at Redskins Park. Homer McFanboy , commenting on the following question that theredskinsblog asked a visiting Eddie Jordan : “ What’s the biggest difference between Coach Zorn’s practices here and your practices with the Wizards ?” Ouchie!

Sure the Olympics are here, but I just don't have the same excitement as in past ones. And it has nothing to do with the fact that it's being held in China (despite the way the country has been treating some people) or the "Redeem Team" or anything within the norm. I'm just not feeling it. Bin Laden's driver gets 5 & 1/2 years ; I guess that's a victory, right? Texas' Fab Five get their own movie . McCain's silly, stupid, inaccurate ads were about the jokes , people! But don't make fun of his age, his flip-flopping, his wife pill-popping or his scandals because that's wrong. So that's why Hillary Clinton hasn't been so quick to defend Sen. Obama publicly. How could McCain talk about not having to raise taxes if Sec. Def. Robert Gates wants to do this ? A bail-bondsmen-in-training threatens Obama (and President Bush), goes to jail.

Because whether it's our military , our domestic police force or our economy , McCain's solution is to surge it to death.

These incendiary and personal attacks have no place in our politics, and will do nothing to help the good people of Tennessee. It’s time to turn the page on a politics driven by negativity and division so that we can come together to lift up our communities and our country. -- Barack Obama , speaking on an attack ad made by Nikki Tinker which features pictures of Steve Cohen and the KKK. Wonder how the McCain/FoxNews crowd will spin this? Wait; I don't have to wonder: FoxNews will probably say that Obama didn't denounce the ad, like when they said Obama never said the Pledge of Allegiance in response to a heckler ( who was a press photographer , BTW). UPDATE : The results of this contest are in, and Oliver Willis shares his thoughts .

If anything, she actually has a loose connection to Barack Obama . But of course, that wasn't the point of the ad.

US citizens working in the Middle East are getting the runaround when it comes to personnel problems. Finally: Osama Bin Laden's driver is behind bars ; no more chauffeuring bad guys for him! Next is Bin Laden's barber. More bad news for uber-actor Morgan Freeman. Brett Farve still gets to where green... in New York . House Republicans are still bitching and moaning about not getting a chance to drill for oil. Watch your nuggets : only 40% of American adults have been tested for HIV.

Oh wait; wrong Kwame . Well, after the NBA season starts Detroit will realize that they should have switched.

A crime so big the Bush Administration decided to indict people. For China, being an athlete and an activist doesn't mix . The simple reason Dick Cheney isn't getting an invite to the GOP Convention : Conservative Republicans like him, but they're the only ones. If Iraq isn't using their surplus money for rebuilding , what are they doing with it?

Your stupid "Is Obama Too Popular" Ad, which compared the Senator to Paris Hilton, prompted her to respond : The worse thing isn't Hilton; it's that this is considered news by the mainstream media. Is it funny? Yes. Relevant? Probably. Viral? Most definitely. But is it worthy of being covered by serious journalists? NO. This is for Talk Soup and TMZ, not The Today Show or Hardball. Ye Gods.

Via Dialy Kos diarist panicbean , not what we'd expect (if you believe the MSM) : I find it very disconcerting that we are now building walls between Mexico and the United States of America. Who do these walls benefit? Who are they keeping out, and who are they keeping in? We worked hard to tear down the wall between East and West Germany. The world celebrated when that wall came down. Now we are building walls, again. One in the name of illegal immigration problem solving, and the other in the name of supposed peace. Both are lies.

I'm beginning to believe that Sen. McCain is just stamping these ads without even watching them: It's a shame that there's not a clip of John McCain contradicting his own ad about how well off Americans are...oh; wait a minute: It's like fighting the Riddler, I swear. UPDATE: Perrspectives has more .

Long ago, when the 2008 Democratic Primary stretched out for so long that even hard-core politics-lovers where saying, "Enough already!," there was an odd, simultaneous occurrence: many registered Republican voters were either not voting their party, or not voting at all. Right-wing radio host Rush Limbaugh saw this as a problematic story; it was going to hurt the myth that America was a conservative-minded country (at least Limbaugh's brand of conservatism). Also, it would further illuminate the dissatisfaction people have with President Bush, whether your talking personality, policies or production. So Rush decided to do something that was both sneaky and simple: claim that those Republicans who were voting for Democrats (particularly in the 2008 Democratic Primary) were doing so because they wanted to make the process last as long as possible . The goal: discombobulate the Democrats while giving the "presumptive Republican nominee" a chance to get on his feet...

For what it's worth, here's a video: WTOP believes it to be a hybrid known as a Savannah cat .

Morgan Freeman was injured in an auto accident . Robert Novak's tumor leads to his retirement . What a surprise: the chief at Freddie Mac brushed away the signs that the company was heading into trouble . Of course he did; he knew that a GOP-controlled White House would help bail him out. Yao Ming apologizes to new teammate Ron Artest. John Gotti's been arrested again . Barack Obama's birthday bash in Boston brings in $5 million . Kwame Brown comes to save the Detroit Pistons . I hope he gets tons of playing time.

I mean: draws big crowds, give awe-inspiring speeches, talks of peace... who else could it be ? Jesus? Naw! Can I say that the most twisted thing about this whole spectacle is that George W. Bush's base basically saw him as a chosen child of God? That the Rapture Right (religious conservatives who not only believe in the End of Days, but want to make it happen) were hoping against hope that Bush would cause WWIII so that we could all be properly judged? Amazing that the same group who encouraged (or manipulated, depending on your POV) that philosophy is now behind ads like this one.

Will Republicans complaining about Congress going on break mention President Bush's " trip " to China? I'm thinking, "No." " Homeowners with good credit are falling behind on their payments in growing numbers , even as the problems with mortgages made to people with weak, or subprime, credit are showing their first, tentative signs of leveling off after two years of spiraling defaults." US Airways is charging people for water now . Yay Free Market! Dog adopts white tiger cubs .

D.A.R.N. : The McCain Camp's silly, outdated "Obama is like Paris Hilton" ad (seriously, how much money did they waste on that crap?) is pissing off a McCain donor . Who? Kathy Hilton, Paris' mom .

Oy vey . Canadian police have not yet formally confirmed the victim's identity, but friends paid tribute on Facebook and in e-mails to Canadian media. One told broadcaster CBC that Tim McLean, the presumed victim, was loved by many and called him a "ladies man". Police have charged Vince Weiguang Li, 40, with second-degree murder. Mr Li, of Edmonton, Alberta, appeared in court in Portage la Prairie, Manitoba, on Friday. He said nothing when the judge asked whether he was going to use a lawyer, merely nodding when asked whether he was exercising the right not to speak. The judge said Mr Li should appear in court on Tuesday after he had had an opportunity to speak to a lawyer.

Every election cycle the bobblehead pundits try to explain how things came to be. They sometimes cite seemingly common-sense things like our foreign policy/security concerns or the economy. Other times it's something that's unique to the campaign like gay rights, race or even a political party scandal. I submit that regardless of these reasons, the crucial factor that determines who wins and who loses is how informed (or misinformed) the voters are on election day. When truthful, accurate information is missing, emotions tend to fill the gaps. And in this current political climate voters are more likely to vote along the lines of keeping themselves safe. For example: Since the 2000 Election, the Republican Party has been able to control the narrative...especially as long as the danger was foreign. The Bush Administration has international access that no Democratic candidate could match. The POTUS can make quasi-political speeches in front of soldiers; candidates cannot. The rec...