I agree it was an odd pick, but the Obama people need to call off the dogs, at least for the moment. There will be time for socks to the jaw later.

McCain was fairly complimentary about Biden last week. That will change right quick, but his initial comments were respectful.

Palin probably isn't ready for prime time, and she could end up as the next Dan Quayle. But that will show in time. No need to be petty about it.

I watched all the speeches last night -- Romney, Huckabee, Guilliani, and Palin. They stretched the truth in many places, and took their share of cheap shots, but the Lie Above All Lies that every single one of them repeated, is that the GOP believes in small government.

There has never been a time since Eisenhower that a Republican president left office with a smaller government than when he went in. Never, never, ever.

Why does anyone let these people get away with such a supreme lie? That lie alone should cost them the credibility necessary to be elected.

Forget all the rest of it. Somebody from the Democratic side should be pounding that point home, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, until election day.

But I do know that it is extremely uncommon for an animal predator to hunt a species to extinction. Nature has a way of balancing these things out. When a predator hunts a population to low numbers, the predator population will decrease also, since there is no food to be had. The whole process is self-correcting.

It is only when humans get involved in the equation that animal populations go awry. But then, a governor who is a little hazy about evolution would have trouble getting a grip on that.

The whole world full of problems, and you pick a road sign in front of a church.

The small minded are always mesmerized by small problems.

I thought I could bear just one more Paglia piece, figuring she would have something interesting to say about Palin. Boy, was I ever wrong.

Paglia always hovers on the edge of coherence, but today she is a poster child for all the worst conservatives have to say about academics. I can't stand her narcissistic raving about how she "chooses" to live in the suburbs because she wants to feel the "pulse" of American life. New York and Washington aren't "real" enough for her. Congratulations, princess, you live in suburban Philadelphia! That sacrifice of not living in LA or Vegas or DC must be tough. I feel your pain.

I have a suggestion: try out the Antarctic ice cap for a dose of reality. Let us know how that went.

I guess Paglia could be an authority on political narcissism in the same way Nero is an authority on sanity.

I punted on this article when Paglia explained that she believes abortion is murder, but women should be allowed to have abortions it because nature is also murderous. And oh, by the way -- and this is no contradiction -- humans have the duty to oppose the murderousness of nature, as she said in her book Blah Blah, which you can get on Amazon for $25 if you just click here.

So what is it? Abortion is murder, Paglia asserts, but the government has no business preventing murder. If the government has no business preventing murder, than it has no business doing anything as far as I can see, which makes Paglia not a libertarian but an anarchist, which I think is about right.

I guess it is fun to look at an anarchist in a cage, kind of like going to the zoo, but Paglia is at large, and to my knowledge has actual contact with college age students. This is quite frightening. Anyone care to meet me in the leafy suburbs of PA with a taser and a dart gun?

There really is a such thing as being very fluid with words and as ignorant as a giant tree sloth. Ecce Damus.

A few days ago, Palin made an inane remark about the Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac bailout that implied both companies are federally owned. (For the record, Fannie Maie and Freddie Mac were publicly chartered, but are/were completely private organizations.) For Palin to make that error suggested a serious knowledge gap, at least in the economy.

So I was not surprised that Palin flubbed so many questions here, though I was surprised she was so spectacularly bad at it. GW Bush is no brainiac either, but he seems to be able to surf questions like this. Palin can't even do that. Or maybe it's to her credit that she is not as effective a liar as W is.

Worst for the GOP is that Palin's failure points out something very important about Obama. Like Palin, Obama has a thin resume, and yet Obama is fluidly conversant in almost any subject. Goes to show you that there really is a difference between Obama's thin resume and Palin's.

After a beating like this, I doubt we'll see Palin give an interview again any time soon. Palin can't keep campaigning on that same old acceptance speech, but that's exactly what it appears she will have to do. McCain is in a serious quandary now. He can't risk trotting her out again, perhaps not ever. The debate with Biden now looks like Mt Everest. His best asset must now go into mothballs.

I'm starting to feel sorry for Pallin now. She is no dummy, she just has no national experience. Nothing a term or two in the Senate can't fix. But if McCain crashes and burns, she may not get a second shot at the White House. By selecting a candidate before she is ready, McCain may have not only ruined his own chances but also permanently damaged Palin's.