I just did, and it felt pretty good. We all know that the DNC is just about broke, partly because it has been pushing all the money out the door to the states as fast as it comes in, and partly because all the attention has been on the primary, and on Obama and Clinton.
I'm a Democrat. I've voted a straight Democratic ticket every two years since 1968, except for maybe a couple I might have missed when I was in jail or rehab or love.
I'm not a Reagan Democrat, I despised the man. I wasn't fooled by Bush, the first time or the second. I pissed in their general direction, both of them, posers each in their own way.
And because I've been a Democrat all these years, I am rejoicing today that I didn't have to make one of the toughest choices I can remember, to swallow the bile and vote for another political family dynasty. I, we, all dodged a bullet.
This diary is pretty simple.

Who is the man known as the Goracle?
Who is the man who won a Nobel Prize, an Emmy, an Oscar, and the Tennessee Amateur Bowling League Team Championship in the same year? Al Gore, of course.
Who's the man who won't cop out, when there's danger all about?
Al Gore, that's who.

No, I won't hush my mouth, I'm just talking about Al Gore!
So why hasn't Al Gore endorsed? What is he waiting for? Why won't he put an end to all this dreariness in favor of the candidate of your choice?

I was an Edwards supporter, and after Iowa I switched to Obama.  My opposition to Clinton is nothing personal; I am rabidly against royal political dynasties.
Can you name the countries that have elected the wife of a former president to be a president herself? And no, Argentina is not one of them. (Corrections from astute commenters: Phillipines and of course, Argentina, twice, but not with Evita)
They are Bangladesh, Guyana, and Panama. All fine countries, in their own ways, but of a certain status, shall we say. It may yet be a while before the dollar sinks to parity with the Bengali taka or the Pakistani rupee, but I must say I don't like the direction.
But this diary is about something else.

What kind of country elects the wife of a former President to be the new President?
The easy answers might include Phillipines, Panama, Guyana, or Bangladesh. But those are third world countries, or nearly so. There must be a better answer.
Because America is the greatest country in the world, in every way, it leads every other country.
Anyone who says otherwise is a treasonous pessimist with French ancestry. What kind of a traitor could even think such a thing?
And what is the Renfield Syndrome?

My caucus was scheduled to take place in a church that was desanctified during the secular re-awakening of some local sect of mono-theists. So naturally I got there early.
It currently houses non-stop AA and Narc-Anon meetings around the clock, and also serves as a feeding station for hundreds of stray cats who come both for the free food put out in plates by old ladies, and for the thousands of arboreal rats who also depend on the cat food. They have bushy tails and are responsible for several outbreaks of bubonic plague in my neighborhood. It was a real zoo.
When I first got there I needed to use the bathroom  and had to wait in line for ten minutes. When I finally got in, I realized it was actually the Republican caucus meeting. I voted for Romney and left.

It was a good case John made. It spoke to me. I think he's right on the issues. Far more Americans are killed by our corrupt corporate overlords than have ever been killed by terrorists. And they are making things worse by the week.
But after 6 years of pulling America's coat, the public has not gotten it. And it's plain they are not going to get it. This jury has come in and it isn't good news for John.

My candidate preference order has always been Edwards, Obama, Clinton, with a particular antipathy toward Senator Clinton. I really have never liked her much. I suppose it's because she's a woman, and as such, she reminds me of other women.
I realize this is not completely her fault, and she may not be making me feel this way on purpose.
And on some level, it might even be unfair to blame her for an accident of birth. It's nobody's fault.
We have to accept the world the way it is and the way it looks right now is that I'm going to have to choose between Senator Clinton and Senator Obama fairly soon.

My nephew is scary smart, a math and physics whiz, very athletic, handsome, and with an incredibly bright future. He's in high school now and is considering attending the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs. I sent him this letter to present an alternative view, and since he never reads this blog, I thought I would be alright to share it.

Wake Up America!
This is a message to those voters, like me, who care about 'Family Values', to those who believe, as do I, that America is falling ever further down the slippery slope of semen stained degeneracy and sin.
And, incidentally, to those in the 'Gay' community who are are 'in the know' about your Republican friends.
The message is this: Larry Craig is the tip of the iceberg. The entire Republican leadership, top to bottom, and I mean that literally, is hiding a very dirty secret; a huge percentage, in fact the majority of them,  are all gay. Flaming, screaming, totally gay.

In this unpublicized, hitherto secret hearing of the House Judiciary Committee, the true horrors of the Gonzales reign of terror are revealed. This video was about to made public tomorrow, and shows just to what truly horrific and heinous depths the department had fallen under this evil man.

All day the cable news networks have been showing helicopter rescues taking place in the flooded county of Kingfisher, Oklahoma.
People are being plucked by State Police helicopters out of rising water and off rooftops near the small town of Kingfisher.
But why are these people even there in the first place? Were they not aware that their creek might crest at 27 feet as the remnants of Tropical Storm Erin dropped 11 inches of rain in their locale?
Why are they not able to rescue themselves? Why are they using up valuable helicopter fuel that could be spent training the Oklahoma National Guard for its next tour of duty in Iraq?
Don't get me wrong, my heart goes out to the flood victims, and this is in no way an attack on their racial Okie origin or Okie culture.
But what is it with These People?  
The answer may be unpleasant, but it must be faced.

The world is going to hell in a handbasket, as everyone knows. Global warming, crushing debt, wars, occupations, terrorism, and moral decay assault us on every hand.  Such things make me weep for our Western Civilization. But what can be done? Nothing, friends, absolutely nothing.
It is not possible to solve our problems merely by attacking them one at a time with common sense, logic, and hard work.
No, that approach has been tried before, and failed miserably. And here is the proof: problems still exist.
In fact new problems arise on practically a daily basis!
There are no easy answers, is the sad truth. And if there are no easy answers, then obviously, there are no answers at all. Even worse, to even start working on these problems would necessitate admitting they exist, and that we have been wrong about certain things in the past. These preconditions are impossible to meet.
The truth is no one can fix anything, and we have no control over the difficulties we find ourselves in.
And yet, just possibly,there is a way to fix all of these disasters without anyone having to admit they were wrong and without anyone having to work together.....

Main Entry:   Moral
Part of Speech:  adjective
Definition:  ethical

1. A rule or habit of conduct with regard to right and wrong or a body of such rules and habits. Concerned with principles of right and wrong or conforming to standards of behavior and character based on those principles; "moral sense"; "a moral scrutiny"; "a moral lesson"; "a moral quandary"; "moral convictions"; "a moral life"

Synonyms:  Christian, conscientious, decent, high-minded, honest, honorable, just, kindly, noble, praiseworthy, principled, righteous, scrupulous, truthful, virtuous...
Antonyms:   bad, immoral, unethical

Main Entry:   Retarded
Part of Speech:  adjective
Definition:  limited
Synonyms:  backward, defective, held back, opaque, simple-minded, slow, slow-witted, stupid

Michelle Malkin just mentioned on Fox that I called our troops 'morally retarded".

There is a new Enemy, as the Press Conference reveals!
There will always be an enemy. There has always been an enemy. The enemy is terrifying. Sometimes the enemy changes, and yet the enemy has always been the enemy.
The enemy hates us, because we are all things good. We kill them, because they are all things evil
They are among us, but they are not like us. They hate us for who we are. Because we are so pretty and fine and good!
They make us do bad things, because sometimes they are even within us, and then, especially, we must crush them.
They are coming for our children. They will follow us home. They are undermining the institution of marriage. They are alien, they are illegal, they are beyond the pale. They fit the profile. They are blasphemers and heretics. They are invisible, they are everywhere, they lurk and they pounce. They are coming from inside the house. They did have sex with that woman.  Their glove does fit!

There! I finally said it. It's something that needs to be said, it seems that no one in American politics is willing to say it, so let the chips fall where they may, I'm taking a stand.
For those of you who have a hard time reading, I enclose a video of my statement of support, and for all those who read faster than they listen, I also provide the text of my full statement below. I ask you to read it before you criticize me for my courageous stand in support of our brave troops. Thank you.

NY Times October 7, 1991
Poland's Catholic Primate Visits St. Patrick's

RTE News Sep 30 2006
Paisley to meet with Catholic Primate

BBC 1 December, 1997
Polish Roman Catholic primate critical of radio broadcast...

Picture Australia: Jan 1 1992
ARCHBISHOP VAUGHAN,  THE NEW ROMAN CATHOLIC PRIMATE AT WESTMINSTER.

Catholic Communications Office 4 September 2003
CATHOLIC PRIMATE CONDEMNS INTIMIDATION OF MEMBERS OF DISTRICT POLICING PARTNERSHIP BOARDS

ABC News OnLine   June 6, 2007
The Catholic Primate of Australia and Archbishop of Sydney, George Pell, is threatening to deny communion to Catholic politicians who vote for an expansion of stem-cell research.

We already know about the obscene politicization of the Department of Justice under Abu Gonzalez. We know about document destruction, voter caging, selective prosecution of Democrats, delay and obstruction when it comes to Republican wrongdoing.

I just don't understand why these things don't get reported in the mainstream press. Sometimes I think if we weren't so rich, fat, entitled, and armed to the teeth with every kind of death dealing system known to man, I might actually expect there would be some kind of price to pay for the stupid decisions we make.
I'd leave the country, but as my friend Crimmins would say - "Then you'd just become a victim of our foreign policy."
In any case, my good friend Barry Lank is a crack reporter, and he was able to get a White House press pass. (It's the Gannon Memorial Day Pass)He asked the tough questions the other reporters are afraid to ask, but did we ever see the footage of this?
No. I'm telling you there's a conspiracy of silence around the White House.
Check out the embedded video link for the gruesome details.