The Body Language of Election Day

The article, taken from The Hunffington Post.com was written by Kathlyn and Gay Hendricks of Ojai, California. They have authored several books about relationships and body language. It is a spot-on tribute to the realness of Barack Obama and the lack of direction by McCain.

5. The Exploding Veep
The first big dose of revelatory body language came for us the morning of Election Day, when we finally saw the tape of Dick Cheney endorsing John McCain. If you missed it, here's the key moment: At the peak of the speech, Cheney belted out the punchline, "I believe the right leader for this moment in history is John McCain."

A split-second after these words left his mouth, he exploded into a coughing fit of epic proportions. It was as if his body, after a lifetime of concealment and control, could no longer keep from erupting when forced to utter another lie.

4. All The Way Hume
We switched over to Fox News from time to time, in order to get the far-right spin on the events of the evening. We were particularly interested to see what some of their cocky bombasts would look like eating large helpings of crow.


In body language terms, voice-flags are those vocal tones and tremors that communicate hidden emotions. Brit Hume's voice-flag was the one that stood out like a sore tongue. Throughout the evening, each time he was forced to announce one more McCain loss, he unconsciously lowered his voice to a sepulchral depth usually reserved for state funerals.

It was as if he was grieving more than the loss of his favorite candidate--he was mourning the declining fortunes of his employer and the movement it has trumpeted.

3. Taking The Tics Out Of Politics
In an earlier post we commented on the stunning array of tics, twitches and jaw-clenches that played across John McCain's face during the campaign.
If you study the tape of his concession speech on election night, though, you'll see very little of that kind of body language. Why? Where did it go? The answer is simple but has profound consequences for health and happiness.

The reason McCain's facial flickers were so quiet is that he wasn't trying to be two people at once. It requires body tension to feel anger but pretend it isn't there. It takes effort to seal off fear, and even more effort to whistle along pretending it was never there. "A double-minded man is unstable in all his ways," says the Book of James, and during the campaign, McCain's instability played across his face incessantly.

Now, though, John McCain does not have to pretend to be anything he isn't. He doesn't have to be an honorable man trying to live inside his skin with a fear-mongering alien bent on winning by sowing seeds of hate. He's the better for it, and so are we.

2. The Crowd At Grant Park
We watched Obama's victory speech in a room with people ranging in age from 10 to 63, and all of us had tears in our eyes. Looking around the room, we saw the same emotions on our faces as we saw in the crowd at Grant Park. Some of them were crying tears of relief, others tears of pride, others pure elation.

Beyond emotion, though, the amazing phenomenon was the size of the crowd. We wondered what other event and what other person could inspire a couple hundred thousand people to stand out in the admittedly not-so-cold at midnight. They were there to celebrate Obama and to see history being made, but the looks on their faces told a deeper story: They were there to celebrate the triumph of love and hope over fear and divisiveness.

1. Power, Joy, Grief And Fatigue = One Whole Person
When Obama took the stage, we saw a man embodying a complex array of feeling. He looked tired, of course, and who wouldn't be?

A ten-year-old in the room, who hadn't heard of the death of Barack's grandmother, said "He looks sad." It takes a deeply integrated person to let his grief be visible on a night of overwhelming victory. This is a key to his personality, and bodes well for the future of his presidency. It takes enormous strength to let your vulnerabilities rest so comfortably in yourself that they can be readily seen.

There was one emotion we're glad was missing from Obama and the crowd in Grant Park: any sense of triumphant glee. We couldn't help wondering if it would have been present in McCain's supporters had the tables been turned. John McCain had to silence a few boos and jeers from his audience, but by and large they just looked sad, tired and meek.

Finally, we were deeply moved by Obama's body language at the end, in the easy way he brought forth the other members of his and Biden's family to share the stage. He seemed to melt into them, as if he knows deep in his bones that none of this is really about him as an individual ego.

There's a huge difference between needing to be the center of things and simply being in the middle of things. Somehow, despite all the adulation and glory (as well as the relentless attacks mounted by the other side) Obama still knows what he's known all along: he's one of us.

Obama's Victory Speech - November 4, 2008

"If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a place where all things are possible; who still wonders if the dream of our founders is alive in our time; who still questions the power of our democracy, tonight is your answer.

Its the answer told by lines that stretched around schools and churches in numbers this nation has never seen; by people who waited three hours and four hours, many for the very first time in their lives, because they believed that this time must be different; that their voice could be that difference.

Its the answer spoken by young and old, rich and poor, Democrat and Republican, black, white, Latino, Asian, Native American, gay, straight, disabled and not disabled - Americans who sent a message to the world that we have never been a collection of Red States and Blue States: we are, and always will be, the United States of America.

Its the answer that led those who have been told for so long by so many to be cynical, and fearful, and doubtful of what we can achieve to put their hands on the arc of history and bend it once more toward the hope of a better day.

Its been a long time coming, but tonight, because of what we did on this day, in this election, at this defining moment, change has come to America.

I just received a very gracious call from Senator McCain. He fought long and hard in this campaign, and hes fought even longer and harder for the country he loves. He has endured sacrifices for America that most of us cannot begin to imagine, and we are better off for the service rendered by this brave and selfless leader. I congratulate him and Governor Palin for all they have achieved, and I look forward to working with them to renew this nations promise in the months ahead.

I want to thank my partner in this journey, a man who campaigned from his heart and spoke for the men and women he grew up with on the streets of Scranton and rode with on that train home to Delaware, the Vice President-elect of the United States, Joe Biden.

I would not be standing here tonight without the unyielding support of my best friend for the last sixteen years, the rock of our family and the love of my life, our nations next First Lady, Michelle Obama. Sasha and Malia, I love you both so much, and you have earned the new puppy thats coming with us to the White House. And while shes no longer with us, I know my grandmother is watching, along with the family that made me who I am. I miss them tonight, and know that my debt to them is beyond measure.

To my campaign manager David Plouffe, my chief strategist David Axelrod, and the best campaign team ever assembled in the history of politics - you made this happen, and I am forever grateful for what youve sacrificed to get it done.

But above all, I will never forget who this victory truly belongs to - it belongs to you.

I was never the likeliest candidate for this office. We didnt start with much money or many endorsements. Our campaign was not hatched in the halls of Washington - it began in the backyards of Des Moines and the living rooms of Concord and the front porches of Charleston.

It was built by working men and women who dug into what little savings they had to give five dollars and ten dollars and twenty dollars to this cause. It grew strength from the young people who rejected the myth of their generations apathy; who left their homes and their families for jobs that offered little pay and less sleep; from the not-so-young people who braved the bitter cold and scorching heat to knock on the doors of perfect strangers; from the millions of Americans who volunteered, and organized, and proved that more than two centuries later, a government of the people, by the people and for the people has not perished from this Earth. This is your victory.

I know you didnt do this just to win an election and I know you didnt do it for me. You did it because you understand the enormity of the task that lies ahead. For even as we celebrate tonight, we know the challenges that tomorrow will bring are the greatest of our lifetime - two wars, a planet in peril, the worst financial crisis in a century. Even as we stand here tonight, we know there are brave Americans waking up in the deserts of Iraq and the mountains of Afghanistan to risk their lives for us. There are mothers and fathers who will lie awake after their children fall asleep and wonder how theyll make the mortgage, or pay their doctors bills, or save enough for college. There is new energy to harness and new jobs to be created; new schools to build and threats to meet and alliances to repair.

The road ahead will be long. Our climb will be steep. We may not get there in one year or even one term, but America - I have never been more hopeful than I am tonight that we will get there. I promise you - we as a people will get there.

There will be setbacks and false starts. There are many who wont agree with every decision or policy I make as President, and we know that government cant solve every problem. But I will always be honest with you about the challenges we face. I will listen to you, especially when we disagree. And above all, I will ask you join in the work of remaking this nation the only way its been done in America for two-hundred and twenty-one years - block by block, brick by brick, calloused hand by calloused hand.

What began twenty-one months ago in the depths of winter must not end on this autumn night. This victory alone is not the change we seek - it is only the chance for us to make that change. And that cannot happen if we go back to the way things were. It cannot happen without you.

So let us summon a new spirit of patriotism; of service and responsibility where each of us resolves to pitch in and work harder and look after not only ourselves, but each other. Let us remember that if this financial crisis taught us anything, its that we cannot have a thriving Wall Street while Main Street suffers - in this country, we rise or fall as one nation; as one people.

Let us resist the temptation to fall back on the same partisanship and pettiness and immaturity that has poisoned our politics for so long. Let us remember that it was a man from this state who first carried the banner of the Republican Party to the White House - a party founded on the values of self-reliance, individual liberty, and national unity. Those are values we all share, and while the Democratic Party has won a great victory tonight, we do so with a measure of humility and determination to heal the divides that have held back our progress. As Lincoln said to a nation far more divided than ours, We are not enemies, but friends...though passion may have strained it must not break our bonds of affection. And to those Americans whose support I have yet to earn - I may not have won your vote, but I hear your voices, I need your help, and I will be your President too.

And to all those watching tonight from beyond our shores, from parliaments and palaces to those who are huddled around radios in the forgotten corners of our world - our stories are singular, but our destiny is shared, and a new dawn of American leadership is at hand. To those who would tear this world down - we will defeat you. To those who seek peace and security - we support you. And to all those who have wondered if Americas beacon still burns as bright - tonight we proved once more that the true strength of our nation comes not from our the might of our arms or the scale of our wealth, but from the enduring power of our ideals: democracy, liberty, opportunity, and unyielding hope.

For that is the true genius of America - that America can change. Our union can be perfected. And what we have already achieved gives us hope for what we can and must achieve tomorrow.

This election had many firsts and many stories that will be told for generations. But one thats on my mind tonight is about a woman who cast her ballot in Atlanta. Shes a lot like the millions of others who stood in line to make their voice heard in this election except for one thing - Ann Nixon Cooper is 106 years old.

She was born just a generation past slavery; a time when there were no cars on the road or planes in the sky; when someone like her couldnt vote for two reasons - because she was a woman and because of the color of her skin.

And tonight, I think about all that shes seen throughout her century in America - the heartache and the hope; the struggle and the progress; the times we were told that we cant, and the people who pressed on with that American creed: Yes we can.

At a time when womens voices were silenced and their hopes dismissed, she lived to see them stand up and speak out and reach for the ballot. Yes we can.

When there was despair in the dust bowl and depression across the land, she saw a nation conquer fear itself with a New Deal, new jobs and a new sense of common purpose. Yes we can.

When the bombs fell on our harbor and tyranny threatened the world, she was there to witness a generation rise to greatness and a democracy was saved. Yes we can.

She was there for the buses in Montgomery, the hoses in Birmingham, a bridge in Selma, and a preacher from Atlanta who told a people that We Shall Overcome. Yes we can.

A man touched down on the moon, a wall came down in Berlin, a world was connected by our own science and imagination. And this year, in this election, she touched her finger to a screen, and cast her vote, because after 106 years in America, through the best of times and the darkest of hours, she knows how America can change. Yes we can.

America, we have come so far. We have seen so much. But there is so much more to do. So tonight, let us ask ourselves - if our children should live to see the next century; if my daughters should be so lucky to live as long as Ann Nixon Cooper, what change will they see? What progress will we have made?

This is our chance to answer that call. This is our moment. This is our time - to put our people back to work and open doors of opportunity for our kids; to restore prosperity and promote the cause of peace; to reclaim the American Dream and reaffirm that fundamental truth - that out of many, we are one; that while we breathe, we hope, and where we are met with cynicism, and doubt, and those who tell us that we cant, we will respond with that timeless creed that sums up the spirit of a people:

Yes We Can. Thank you, God bless you, and may God Bless the United States of America."

My own Mayor Jerry Sanders on Proposition 8: AMAZING

The Night Before

I can't remember this level of excitement over an election (other than the many union elections I was far too involved with for too many years) that could compare to the Presidential race of '08. Although my best friend, boyfriend, sister, mom and dad will all be voting for McCain, I still have faith that Obama is going to pull this one off.

Once the campaign is over, the nation can get back to focusing on fixing what's wrong, and I can get back to blogging about whatever I want.

Thanks for reading whoever you are...

Boris Karloff aka McPain

I raced home from the airport last night to watch the debate. When it was over I was left wondering why anyone would support John McCain. His nasty demeanor and obvious disdain for Sen. Obama among his other shortcomings just turned me off. Rather than attempt my own version of what took place, read on; this says it all...

October 16, 2008
The Great Republican Crack-up of 2008
Brent Budowsky

I am pretty partial to Hemingway, but this campaign is very F. Scott Fitzgerald. It is the great Republican crack-up of 2008, and in this drama, the great truth is this: McCain is Boris Karloff, from the horror movies of old, Obama is Tony Bennett, the wonderful crooner of smooth, with one of the great presidential temperaments of our times. This election will be won by a man of great presidential temperament, against a man of great and uncontrollable temper he cannot even attempt to hide.

With markets crashing and the economy sinking, McCain shows up at another debate looking angry and nasty, his face tense with some inner contempt that dominates his presence, throwing tiresome slops of mud to voters who hunger for reassurance and substance, his face twisted and eyeballs rolling like Karloff in the horror movies. Obama by contrast is Frank Sinatra during his mellower moments, or even better, Tony Bennett by starlight, looking cool in a crisis, calm in a storm, the serious man for serious times, calmly unflappable. Obama talks about healthcare while McCain talks about Ayers. Obama talks about education while McCain talks about ACORN. Obama talks about jobs while McCain grunts and snarls and sighs in ways that are devastating to him on split-screen television.

It is the great Republican crack-up of 2008. Republican economics brings the nation to the brink. Republican fearmongering erodes the very confidence essential to the markets while turning off whole swaths of independent voters. A Republican president, whom McCain supported 90 percent of the time, disappears during an economic crisis, sneaking into fundraisers through the back door to hide his support of his anointed heir from voters who demand powerful change.

The House Republican campaign committee is virtually bankrupt, while Senate Republicans desperately try to hide from the truth of their overwhelming support for their disappearing president and their unwavering obstruction and filibusters against any hope for change.

While McCain looks like Boris Karloff in the movies, dishing sludge in all directions, we now see endangered Republicans trying to distance from the disaster, even saying friendly words about Obama while the sludge dump continues from the top of the ticket, and the ridiculously unqualified power abuser from Alaska, having finally ended her lie to nowhere about the Bridge to Nowhere, continues to inflame the angry rightist base of the Republican Party that is so radically out of touch with the heart and soul of Middle America.

McCain even uses the debate to attack and demean the concerns of women for their very health on the matter of abortion. What kind of angry, out-of-touch, strange kind of attack is this? Trivializing, demeaning, ridiculing and insulting women concerned about their health on the most important decision of their lives?

It is conservative Chris Buckley who gets to the heart of the matter: Obama has a truly presidential temperament, while McCain has a truly extreme temper, and after eight years of Bush, the nation prefers the smooth and urbane crooner who talks of serious things in serious ways, to the angry face that is all that remains of Republican rule in a nation that yearns to turn the page and leave this past behind.

Fact Checking the 1st Presidential Debate

Both candidates misspoke on occasion. But McCain's blunders made Obama's look like a hiccup.

My friends, I'm voting for that one

My new favorite line thanks to McCain's disdain for Obama.

Fact Checking the VP Debate

The website: factcheck.org is a substantial resource for this campaign. Here, I have linked the site's fact checking on Joe Biden and Sarah Palin's misstatements throughout their one and only debate on October 2, 2008.

Fact. Spin. Rumor. Opinion. What Really Matters

Today is the first day of the rest of this presidential election. Pay close attention. Do not get sidetracked. This is a message to myself. I, too, got snookered by small-bore bickering and secondary ephemera. I sat in front of the television and listened as so-called surrogates for the candidates played gotcha with obfuscation, misdirection and outright lies. A presidential election is a game now, and we're not playing, we're getting played. With very few exceptions—hats off to you, David Gergen—nothing being said has much to do with the future of this country or the well-being of its citizens. As a wise woman said to me the other day, talking points and talking are two very different things.

Once again we find ourselves planting our flag amid rubble. Now it is the rubble of the American economy, with great financial institutions faltering and failing and the stock market every which way. Rubble has become the symbol of this country over the past eight years: the still-unaddressed rubble of a decimated New Orleans, the growing rubble on the streets of Iraq.

At such a time, considering whether a tanning bed was installed in the governor's mansion in Alaska amounts to holding a barbecue on the lip of the volcano. For months I have been wondering how anyone could believe that Barack Obama, who has worshiped at a Christian church in Chicago for many years, was a Muslim. Then in the space of a few hours I received dozens of copies of a bogus list of books the Republican vice presidential candidate had allegedly banned from a local library while serving as mayor. The right no longer holds the patent on cyberbull. It is everywhere.

Maybe this campaign, which looked so promising, so dedicated to real issues and real change a year ago, can now get back on course. The debates are nigh, and they are crucial. The country is in a mess. And in November its citizens must decide who has the integrity, the intellect, the principles to steer us out of it.

Voters must become educated consumers to make that decision. They must draw on multiple sources, not just one. They must be conscious of what is fact, what is spin and what is opinion in a media world in which pundits seem to outnumber reporters. For example, here's my opinion: the only good news in last week's economic earthquake was that the political dialogue took a turn toward the substantive. But John McCain took a sad turn—a U-turn—for the worse. For most of the past 20 years McCain was a senator who was sure and stubborn and stood for certain things, many of them things with which I disagree. But disagreement is honorable; shape-shifting is not. In the space of a single news cycle Senator McCain went from being a longtime supporter of deregulation to a man inveighing against the lack of government oversight in the financial markets. He railed against the greed of Wall Street when Wall Street has been the ancestral home of his party.

In a speech after the 2000 race, Senator McCain had this to say about shifting his stance on the flying of the Confederate flag: "I feared that if I answered honestly, I could not win the South Carolina primary. So I chose to compromise my principles." Surrounded by the acolytes of Karl Rove, the carnivorous political operative who once savaged him, with a running mate he seems to have chosen out of calculation rather than the best interests of the country, Senator McCain last week was once again hedging principle in favor of victory. His party has been in power as the country has run aground, yet he and his people try to suggest that the same party with the same people and the same policies will somehow produce different results.

Anna Quindlen
Newsweek
September 29, 2008

Sarah Palin and South Park

A friend discovered an uncanny similarity between Sarah Palin and Principal Victoria from South Park. Primarily, Principal Victoria's voice is less shrill. Among other things.

The GOP is awfully quiet lately

Looks like they're hiding Sarah P. to avoid anymore bad press from her incessant parroting of all things Karl Rove.

John McCain took center stage this week following the 500 point drop in the Dow with his comment that our economy is strong. Sure it is, John. We are watching banks fail at an astounding rate and refusing to even lend to each other because there's no more trust. The housing market is at an all time low in this century. But damn if our economy isn't strong.

I liked it better about 8 years ago when it was apparently nice and weak and I was making 30 percent more at work, my houses had doubled in value and my 401(k) was worth the same as it is today.

So keep it up John. You have a great handle on all things America.

Let me see if I have this straight:

* If you grow up in Hawaii, raised by your grandparents, you're "exotic, different."

* Grow up in Alaska eating mooseburgers, a quintessential American story.

* If your name is Barack you're a radical, unpatriotic Muslim.

* Name your kids Willow, Trig and Track, you're a maverick.

* Graduate from Harvard Law School, you're unstable.

* Attend 5 different small colleges before graduating, you're well grounded.

* If you spend 3 years as a community organizer, become the first black president of the Harvard Law Review, create a voter registration drive that registers 150,000 new voters, spend 12 years as a Constitutional Law professor, spend 8 years as a State Senator representing a district with over 750,000 people, become chairman of the state Senate's Health and Human Services committee, spend 4 years in the United States Senate representing a state of 13 million people while sponsoring 131 bills and serving on the Foreign Affairs, Environment and Public Works and Veteran's Affairs committees, you don't have any real leadership experience.

* If your total resume is: local sportscaster, beauty queen runner-up, 4 years on the city council and 6 years as the mayor of a town with less than 7,000 people, 20 months as the governor of a state with only 650,000 people, then you're qualified to become the country's second highest ranking executive. * If you have been married to the same woman for 19 years while raising 2 daughters, all within Protestant churches, you're not a real Christian.

* If you cheated on your first wife with a rich heiress, and left your disfigured wife and married the heiress the next month, you're a Christian.

* If you teach responsible, age appropriate sex education, including the proper use of birth control, you are eroding the fiber of society.

* If while governor, you staunchly advocate abstinence only, with no other option in sex education in your state's school system while your unwed teen daughter ends up pregnant, you're very responsible.

* If your wife is a Harvard graduate lawyer who gave up a position in a prestigious law firm to work for the betterment of her inner city community, then gave that up to raise a family, your family's values don't represent America's.

* If your husband is nicknamed "First Dude", with at least one DWI conviction and no college education, who didn't register to vote until age 25 and once was a member of a group that advocated the secession of Alaska from the USA, your family is extremely admirable.

Earmarking is good unless I'm nominated as VP, Pt. 3

Confused, Pt. 4

To Secede or Not To Secede

Todd Palin, Sarah's husband, was registered as a member of the Alaskan Independence Party in '95 and again in '02. This party's intentions are to reconsider the 1958 decision to include Alaska as part of the United States. Primarily, the AIP promotes Alaska as an Independent and Separate Nation. The Party promotes the following goals:

Goals
According to the Alaskan Independence Party's web site:
"The Alaskan Independence Party's goal is the vote we were entitled to in 1958, one choice from among the following four alternatives:

Remain a Territory.
Become a Separate and Independent Nation.
Accept Commonwealth status.
Become a State.

Sarah Palin, no doubt in support of her husband's politics, but also because this woman appears to do nothing but indulge her own agenda, can be seen on a website video welcoming the members of the Alaskan Independence Party to its Convention in '06 and encouraging them to "keep up the good work." Her husband resides on its membership roster for 2 months short of 7 straight years. The founder of the Party, Joe Vogler, is quoted on the web site as stating: "I've got no use for American or her damned institutions."

McCain's campaign slogan, on the other hand, is Country First. Huh.

Palin Under Investigation

The State Legislature voted 12-0 in support of a full investigation into whether Sarah Palin abused her power in firing the Public Safety Commissioner who refused to fire her sister's ex-husband - an Alaska State Trooper.

Read the article here...

Palin Turns Alaska's Clock Back 36 Years

Every time I pass a dog on the street or in the airport or wherever it is I am and there's a dog in sight, I am drawn to it immediately. I can't help myself. Just ask my boyfriend. I approach the owner so I can say hi (to the dog, of course) all the while gritting my teeth because I love dogs so much I just want to squish them all really hard. The only time I won't bend down and have a chat with my new friend is when the owner alerts me to its unfriendliness (the owner's of course).

I'm a sucker for animals. Mainly because, and particularly in the case of dogs, their love is unconditional. Animals mean no harm; they are simply protecting their territory and they were here long before we were. Animals don't have weapons and are all about the law of natural selection. I have my favorite breeds (Westies, Goldens, Wheatons, Corgis, Bernese Mountain Dogs, Bichons, Brussels Griffons, Yorkies, Pomeranians, and then my not so favorite breeds (Poodles, Dachsunds and Chinese Crested) but honestly, there isn't a single breed of dog that I could imagine wanting to kill. Really not interested in shooting animals at all because they are so clearly the underdog in this mess, but dogs in particular are off limits.

NOT SINCE 1972
Apparently, everyone's newest favorite Alaskan Governor put a bounty on the lives of wolves in Alaska last year - just a few months into her term as Governor. A bounty on wolves hasn't been incorporated into the Alaska predatory control practice since 1972. Thirty-six years. But Palin did it without skipping a beat. She's like the company I work for - screw them over now, make amends later. And all of this in order to save two other animal species: the Caribou and the Moose. Is she pretending she cares? Did you see the dead Caribou thanks to Sarah's quick trigger finger as her young daughter looked on, lying beneath her foot? Palin's administration is "anteing up the cash" for the fryfest and will pay $150 per right leg, (obviously, this would involve detaching the right leg as proof of kill to be paid).

"State biologists wanted 382 to 664 wolves killed... As of Tuesday morning, 98 wolves had been killed by aerial gunners, hunters and trappers."

Honestly, the thought of this slaughtering of these beautiful, innocent animals makes me want to put a wolf costume on her and secure a hunting license of my own as soon as possible. And I'll pony up her right leg without demanding a dime.

*The wolf bounty began before Alaska became one of the United States. It ended 13 years later, "in part because wolf pelts had become so valuable there was no need to encourage kills."

By the way: What is up with this woman? I truly am trying to find something endearing about her. There MUST be something. If you know what it is, you know where to comment.

Seven years ago

I was in my apartment in Bedford, TX, watching the Today show's live feed of the North Tower on fire when I saw the South Tower struck by the United Airlines jet.

It is impossible to forget what it was like working at APFA headquarters throughout the week trying to figure out how to deal with something so magnanimous. Those of us who were stuck away from our homes spent the next 7 days straight in Euless trying to help flight attendants who couldn't get home all the while ignoring our own situation because dealing with everyone else's was so much easier. That's what union reps do on a smaller scale. But this was a whole new ball game.

It took me months, long after I had published the 9/11 magazine for APFA followed by the crash of AA 587 and a subsequent memorial magazine, to deal with my grief. Ultimately, my response to that grief was to move back to New York as a sign of loyalty. I have no regrets about that decision and made the most of my 3 years enjoying the city I consider my second home.

I love New York. Always have and always will. Even before I'd ever traveled west of Utah, I knew New York and I would be good together. Following 9/11, I made a point to visit Ground Zero by either hopping on the subway when I lived there or flying to New York from my home in San Diego, and spending the day enjoying the city and honoring the memory of the World Trade Center and all its absence represents.

This year, I decided that it was okay to stay put and just remember in my own way. Just let it be personal and not feel like I had to be anywhere other than where I am. Home. It was an uneventful day. I like it that way.

Just didn't want to let the day go by without acknowledging what it means to me.

Snopes

Whenever I receive an email regarding the latest/greatest web virus from one of my not-so-techy friends, if it contains anything remotely believable, I go to Snopes to read more. Even though viruses aren't really designed for the MAC so much as Bill G. and his long list of friends, it occurs to me that if my 15" Intel MacBook Pro 160 GB hard drive ever failed, I'd poop pink twinkies and contort all 5'8" of me into the fetal position next to Elwood's litter box for a month.

Sarah Palin is, at least to me, like a web virus. There must be at least one redeeming quality about her in order for her to land support of the top Republican spindoctors in America. So what the hell am I missing?

In order to be as fair and balanced as possible, I am compelled to share the following page from Snopes - the Internet's unofficial site for rumors, fact checking, etc. I rely on this site as it is all about the facts so far as I can tell, and I have yet to find anything that's been confirmed/denied by Snopes that was done so for political gain. Bottom line, snopes.com has a solid reputation not just in my book but throughout the Internet world. Wikipedia can't boast that status, nor can Fox News, McCain/Palin.com OR Obama/Biden.com. All of these resources are politically motivated, or, in the case of Wikipedia, can be edited by those who are.

I'll post more in the morning. Just got home from a wonderful night with 4 of my favorite girlfriends and it's time for my nine-hour nap.

I CAN SEE

Wow - just got my first pair of contacts at the ripe age of does it really matter. This is amazing. I can see the screen without my glasses. I can read my iPhone without widening the window. I can even read the letter from Countrywide apologizing for the data security breach of my two mortgages by a former employee who may have sold my SSN, full name, address and zip code to some random thief. This is awesome.

Triumph the Insult Dog at the Republican Convention

"...So Cool Growin' Up in this Church; Gettin' Saved Here"

Sarah Palin addresses a group of ministry students in Wasilla, Alaska. Listen to and watch more of her religious views here as she gets down with her peeps via YouTube.

Palin Does 180 on Bridge to Nowhere

This article by the Boston Globe addresses Palin's 180 degree flop on the "Bridge to Nowhere" she promised to the residents of Ketchikan. Now that she's running for VP, she's changed her mind.

In her acceptance speech, she proclaims "I told Congress, thanks but no thanks on that bridge to nowhere," to the cheering McCain crowd. Prior to her candidacy, she campaigned on a promise to build the bridge for these residents.

Palin on the Issues

Wikipedia is a well-known online resource similar to Encyclopedias of old. I have found some mistakes as posted on Wikipedia from time to time but generally speaking, it is considered a fairly reputable source.

Since there is so little information established about Sarah Palin and her position on issues, I turned to Wikipedia for more information. There, I found a short, sweet list of topics and her purported positions on each. I admit that some of her responses are sharp and appealing, ex: "What will you do with Alaska's new state jet?" A: "Figure out how to sell it."

The following seems to be a fairly thorough listing of her position on the issues complete with referenced citings. These are very similar to that which is published ontheissues.org.

I find it particularly interesting that she is against stem cell research, abortion even in the event of rape or incest, sex education in schools, same-sex marriage (however, in August of '08 she vetoed a bill that denied benefits to gays stating it was unconstitutional). Props for that. She also stated to have smoked pot when it was legal in Alaska. Not sure what year that was, but it's worth mentioning.

Sarah P... why not? Five good reasons for starters

From the Dallas Morning News, August 29, 2008:

Seriously? Sarah Palin for VP? It's one thing for millions of voters to put forward a sitting senator as a possible commander in chief, but for John McCain to hand-pick a first-term governor of a tiny state is bizarre. Here are five reasons why, if she is the pick, this is a huge mistake:

1. There goes McCain's best argument.
He cannot say Obama is not ready but she is. Obama started organizing his campaign for president the same month she was sworn in to lead the third-smallest state's government.

2. She has no base of support.
Obama won his senate seat with 3,597,456 votes, that's more than five times the population of Alaska. He has won more than 18 million votes in a long, tough primary that tested him and prepared him. How has she been tested? She lost her first bid for statewide office, then won the governor's office with 114,697 votes, not a majority, but enough to take office. And apparently, enough to set her up for the Oval Office.

3. The "woman card" will backfire.
She's no Hillary Clinton. And this is such an obvious ploy. It would be different if she were known to anyone or qualified or something.

4. Alaska, a corrupt hinterland.
Yes, she is a hard-nosed, tough reformer. But the McCain campaign will have to deal with the fact that Alaska seems like a foreign land as corrupt as Louisiana. It's longtime senator will stand trial smack dab in the middle of this campaign season, and McCain may have to vote to remove him from office. Yes, they can spin it that she is someone cleaning up the mess up there, but what Americans realize is that they don't know much about what goes on up there. Will they be comfortable with her?

5. Was this McCain's choice?
It seems clear that McCain wanted to go with Lieberman but was talked out of it by the right wing of his party. Rove admits calling Lieberman to ask him to pull his name out. Bush lost his way because he never stood up to Rove et. al. McCain is headed down the same path.

Mr. McCain's Soulmate? - by me

Since I've yet to give birth - and it appears that I won't be doing so anytime soon - I'll admit I can't relate to Sarah Palin's obsession with squirting out babies nonstop. Further, her lack of interest or effort in keeping the world's population down via birth control eludes me. She is against education programs relating to sex for kids and openly opposes it as Governor. She also opposes abortion in the event of incest or rape. Fortunately, I haven't had to face the incest/rape factor but I'm really glad she's not my mom just the same.

Most recently she gave birth to a baby with Down's Syndrome. This neither makes her a hero nor extraordinary. But it does make her a parent with added responsibilities to her family.

I hear women state that because of this child, Mrs. Palin will pave the way for families with special-needs children if she becomes Vice President. Really?! Mrs. Palin has done nothing during her two years as Governor of Alaska to improve the lives of children in general and special-needs children in particular. What makes anyone think that she will alter her course if she succeeds in her quest for national office? Not gonna happen.

With her acceptance of the Vice Presidential nomination, Palin's life is now subject to vetting by the pros. Like Britney, OJ and Ted Kennedy, she has made her choice and it's open season. America is comprised of curious folks and the press will undoubtedly deliver. So far, they've not let anyone down. Except maybe Sen. McCain, Sarah Palin, the state of Alaska and Bush fans nationwide. Only Mrs. Palin herself knows what else is in store for us and I'm guessing we haven't seen the last of her past.

I'm all about the underdog particularly when there's a bully involved. And Palin has surely seen her share of bullies since the GOP announcement of her candidacy. But beyond Her Victim-ness is something that undermines any compassion I may have held for her public beatings. Sarah Palin enjoys hunting animals. This just pisses me off beyond belief. Her calloused approach toward animals has thoroughly turned me away from all things Republican at least during this election. I don't do animal suffering and when I hear about anyone setting out to kill for sport, I can only hope the animal has a gun, a jeep, an opposing thumb and 10 Uzi lessons under its belt.

I'm no angel. I don't possess any delusions of or desires for becoming the second most powerful person in the free world. But Mrs. Palin does. I have a healthy fear of public scrutiny and have learned that - following 9 years of union work on a national level - people can be relentless and downright mean when you are standing between where they are and where they want to be.

Frankly, I would rather live in a refrigerator box under the Brooklyn Bridge than have someone broadcast my shortcomings in every national newspaper and on every TV show across America. I have not led my life in such a way that a full-court press would render me anything but a mess. So I'll continue to stay right here, planted firmly behind my keyboard and express my opinions on someone who has chosen the exact opposite for their future.

The whole "mother of five including a pregnant daughter and Down's Syndrome son" smörgåsbord doesn't make her a stronger candidate. It just makes her a distraction. If the Republicans are asking America to keep their hands off her personal life and focus on her professional record, why pass her youngest of five (a four-month old baby with Down's Syndrome) around at the Republican Convention like a shower gift? Instead of protecting her son from national exposure and the venom of reporters, she is using him as a political tool to blur the line between personal and professional choices. She has blown the door open on her family vault and when the press accepted the invitation and stomped through her hallways dirty feet and all, she tried to throw her international stop sign. Too late ma'am. You can't have it both ways.

I am stunned by McCain's choice for a replacement. It's clear that he kowtowed to conservative spindoctors. Bottom line, Sarah Palin is a snapperhead. She needs help; not a new job. And if she's elected, so will we.

In closing, following is the final paragraph of the Vice Presidential Candidate's bio as published on the official page of the Governor of Alaska:

"Palin is a lifetime member of the NRA and enjoys hunting, fishing, Alaska history, and all that Alaska's great outdoors has to offer."

In the spirit of Jay Leno to Hugh Grant following his faux pas with a hooker: "Mr. McCain: What the hell were you thinking?"

Moist, Damp and Saturated

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