"The Allen campaign responded by saying that it never meant to question Webb's patriotism."...

...Is a very cowardly, sniveling responce.

If John Kerry had responded the same way to The Swift Boat vermin he'd be in the White House right now. Jim Webb, Paul Hackett, there are a couple. The problem is, though, the Democrats, as a party, runs terrified from any of their candidates with balls.

"It's that by redefining the definition of marriage to mean anything we want it to, the word comes to mean nothing at all."

Elizabeth Taylor, Britney Spears, my two white trash cousins, Rush Limbaugh and a multitude of other heterosexuals, to legion to list, have done a damn fine job of redefining the definition of marriage to mean anything thay want, need or can use to their best advantage.

That argument is foolish.

"not engaged in a traditional battle with a nation-state"

Then why were we engaged in a "traditional battle with a nation-state", and now occupying that nation-state even though it had nothing to do with "the worldwide, hydra-headed enemy, who lurks in the shadows"?

Why? I've never heard him say anything or do anything that would suggest he has the qualities needed to make a good president. As a Senator he's nothing more that an empty grandstander. He should hook up with a cable news station and go into tv. I voted for him last time, next time I'll take a pass.

So you're a tv personality and you're fired because, well, the audience doesn't like you. Does Star Jones really think throwing herself in front of any nearby camera with her rictus smile and passive/agressive bile will make her more popular? She's creepy and she found herself on a pretty creepy show, and even that didn't work out for her.

I have a feeling a majority of the American public would agree with this. That's the most frightening part of all. You know when the government begins an assault on the free press and has a phantom mouth piece (Fox News along with most of the other cable news stations) hammering away with its propoganda a very dangerous line has been crossed.

One day when we wake up and find ourselves in the Fourth Reich we need only to look in the mirror for who to blame. The American people opened the door and invited these devils in.

what happens when you assume, but I'll go out on a limb and make an assumption anyway.

The Sears Tower, the NYC subway system and tunnels, the Golden Gate Bridge, the Empire State Building, the Washington Mall, etc all are pretty obvious targets for terrorists whether it be al quaeda, freelance foreign kooks or domestic wackos. Whenever I read these reports I honestly don't throw my hand in front of my face and drop back into my chair. Its not really a revalation...its pretty much to be expected.

One of the strangest things I found about the Rockstar series (same held true last season) is that the performers seem utterly clueless regarding the songs they're singing. This week some clown mimiced the Black Crowes' She Talks to Angels. Turn down the sound and just watch...you'd never guess he was signing a dark, unhappy song. He coyly winked and smiled and wiggled his head and gyrated all the while he sang what is a pretty grim song. All of the "performers" are like that. If you told them to sing Happy Birthday or Heroin the result would be the same mincing, prancing, grinning, sadly unsexy, huffing and puffing without a shred of originality.

It really is one of those trainwrecks you just find yourself tuning into week after week.

I have a feeling George Bush and Osama bin Laden will do a duet of Anything You Can do I Can Do Better at the Washington Press Association Dinner.

Bill Maher hit the nail on the head with that one. We're several decades into the all volunteer army and its clear we're seeing what its attracting, and what's being accepted. When there was a draft the pool was so huge the undesirables could be weeded out. Now, especially now, they seem to be taking whatever they can get. The vast majority of people join to further their careers or take advantage of the educational benefits, but there is also a darker element that is attracted to the military.

At this point our troops only mission in Iraq is to not get killed. They're not doing anything, they have no real mission, there is no plan, no exit strategy, no realistic acceptable outcome. The situation is brutal and chaotic. Its been mismanaged from the Whitehouse on down. Our reputation and standing in the world has been trashed. The image of our armed forces is now sinister. In a toxic environment like this, those darker elements drawn to the military can indulge themselves and run almost unchecked. To make it worse, our official policy seems to encourage them now.