Not to excuse Blagojevich, but I bet if taps were placed on phones of all the governors, we wouldn't have any left. It is interesting how unethical people can be so naive about their conduct...naive enough to blab on the telephone in a public position. I just assumed this kind of behavior was par for the course in politics so I am not shocked at all; however, the lack of discretion in this incident is what makes this case interesting. How could this governor assume that his phones weren't tapped when there are enemies about! Perhaps he is so tainted, he doesn't even realize that his actions are illegal?

I started this article...read a couple of paragraphs...quit reading because I immediately remembered why I no longer read Camille Paglia. She says nothing to inspire my trust or enlighten my thoughts. I've learned my lesson...again. I could care less what this woman thinks or says.

Hopefully, Obama will not water down the progressive nature of his politics to court the right wing. The thought of that "sends shivers down my bottle." This was one of my greatest fears about his candidacy in the first place...that he would be too wishy washy, compromise too much, and, otherwise, sacrifice meaningful leadership for so-called unity.

On the other hand, this may be a good sign that he knows how to play the game by bringing the country together. It's too early to divine. We'll simply have to wait.

Endless airing of the same show has a great deal to do with why I turned off the few television dramas I watch. The new season brings in a few new shows of successful series and then revert back to reruns for months before they give us more new episodes...the public is tired of it and has turned off.

Caroline Kennedy does not impress me as having much of a personality and particularly not a political personality. Her speech at the Democratic Convention was uninspiring and even timid...perhaps she is seeking the Senate seat because her uncle wants her to continue his goals. That is not a bad reason for throwing one's hat in the ring and besides that, I have always admired Ted Kennedy's politics on most issues. Peronally, I hope she is selected because I believe her presence in the Senate would be another liberal voice...I hope. I put it that way because I don't know enough about her. It would be a good idea for her to do a real job of selling herself...actually campaign out in the field. If she's not willing, then she shouldn't be appointed.

I am fascinated by the synopsis of the campaign in this article. Looking back, I did not believe the American people would overlook Obama's race and I feared that he was unelectable. How wonderful to be wrong! However, I worry that Obama will be too centrist...actually, that was my perception of him from the beginning. On the other hand, I am totally pleased with his selection of scientists in his administration and though I can't stomach Warren, I don't think that Obama made a mistake with him. The new president seeks to unite and this may help a little...plus, it's a token...a little whimper, signifying not much.

As for Hillary, I think she made Obama's election possible, along with the horrible state of the economy and McCain's inept campaign. Hillary exposed all of Obama's skeletons making their impact old news by the time McCain became a factor...Americans were tired of Rev. Wright and all that BS. Also, the long campaign season gave Americans time to get used to Obama, someone they hardly new or understood. They came to admire his studied, well-thought-out responses to unfolding events. I hope it continues and I pray that the media does not turn on him they way they did Clinton when he first took office.

Nothing is going to change the tacit backing of Israel by the U.S. Both political parties are bought and paid for by Israel interests to the detriment of this country. It would be political suicide for a politician to voice opposition. Jimmy Carter (who doesn't have anything to lose) is the only one I can remember saying anything negative about Israeli actions.

Of course, Israel must defend itself but killing innocents is not going to help the situation at all. It will exacerbate the conflict and further incite Arab hatred of the U.S. and Israel prolonging the fighting. And, yes, Hamas deserves world disgust for raining rockets in Israel...I wish we would turn our backs on the whole lot and let them duke it out but it isn't going to happen.

The renegade Bush Administration has assaulted our Constitutional rights in the name of fighting terrorism in many ways which are even counterproductive in fighting terrorism. Rendition, warrantless phone taps, holding people, even citizens, without access to the courts is outrageous. However, I do approve of surveillance on financial accounts (strictly curtailed) to catch would-be terrorists. This latter method has spotted potential terrorist threats and nipped them in the bud. I am all for installing more and better cameras on the streets and other public places.

If we had spent all the trillions we have wasted in Iraq on modernizing our transit facilities in spotting and searching passengers, even beefing up profiling methods, all that money would have been sensibly spent. There are countless new technologies for identifying offenders that are too expensive to install at this point, such as eye recognition software and bomb sniffing machines, or even adding more dogs. The threats are not going away...we must be vigilant. I hope Obama will discard rendition, warrantless eaves dropping on phone calls and e-mails, and holding people indefinitely without trial. I will be disappointed if he doesn't.