If you are a Jew in New York with a special interest in Israel, you undoubtedly know more about the situation there than I do.

Come on, now, lighten up. Didn't you think the Jesse thing was at least slightly funny, if only for it's purely Jackson-esque farcial quality? As far the fear factor is concerned, you can decide for yourself. I'm not going to argue about it. If I were you, I would rather have IDF Sarah, whatever her motives, on my side than the likes of Barack. In fact, knowing what I know about Chicago, I would be scared to death about his presidency. But as you say, that's dreaded associationalism, and there is no place for McCarthyism in our discourse.

Now, with McCain. I don't know what he wants to do over there -- peace talks or fence building, bomb Iran or not bomb Iran. If you want to call that a win - McCain is no better for Israel, so be it.

Hey, you may be right. Perhaps I'm getting grumpy. I fear my team will lose, and I may be the only person left who thinks it won't. But I'm certainly not getting chits from anyone. Just a guy on the computer having some fun.

See prior posts re: the Jackson thing. The guy's a total flake. Don't shoot the messenger for pointing out the obvious.

Glad to hear your son is enjoying UChicago. It's a great town. Even (or perhaps especially) the south side, despite my repeated half-hearted knocks on it.

Drive approximately one block south of the Hyde Park limit, and then just keep going for about an hour in any direction. That's the neighborhood I'm talking about re: Jackson and the rest.

Someone asked on an earlier thread for a defense of McCain, as you did tonight. Here is what I posted:

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Not sure I like the name "troll," but you asked for a McCain supporter's defense of his candidate, sans attack on Obama. Here goes.

1. Oops, gotta start with Obama. He and Pelosi favor tax "cuts" for 95% of the country, including 40% who pay no taxes. It's dangerous, in my opinion, for a democracy to openly bid on the give-away of other peoples' money. And, there is no public "need" here, like with farm subsidies or emergency welfare relief. Just "fairness." People going back to John Adams worried about this sort of thing; it was one reason we got an electoral college instead of direct vote and a veto for the monarch/president. It's a leap beyond progressive taxation . . . toward a late Roman empire bread and circus mentality, in my view.

2. Hyde Amendment. Barack wants to federally fund abortions for the first time, and vowed his first act as president would be to sign a bill which, if I understand correctly, would revert back to legality of partial birth abortion and supercede state laws banning late term abortions. I oppose such measures, as does McCain.

3. War and peace. McCain is a bit like Andrew Jackson, another unlettered hot head. One reason the country did not break apart thirty years sooner than it did is that the port collectors in Charleston took seriously Jackson's threat to personally kill them if they did not enforce the federal tariff, like in the duels of his youth.

Eisenhower kept the peace through strength. Kennedy put the world in constant peril through his disastrous novice judgment at the Bay of Pigs, and his ill advised Vienna summit. I respect Kennedy for recovering, and being a fast learner, but it was perilous all the same.

I think the world would be more dangerous under Obama, because the likes of Putin would see him as a new Jimmy Carter and start the tanks rolling to test his resolve. And, like Carter, Obama is conflicted. Jimmy liked the Michael Manleys of the world, yet was in charge of a staunchly rightist Cold War country. Obama too is conflicted - just look at Jesse Jackson's comment yesterday about Barack's latent desire to kick the "Zionists" out of Washington. (Those familiar with the south side of Chicago will instantly recognize this as an all too common sentiment). Yet, he's going to be in charge of a pro-Israel, anti-Arab middle eastern policy. His stomach will be in knots over it. In turn, so will ours.

McCain, like Jackson and Eisenhower, would do a better job with preventative peace.

I probably should ignore those saying really nasty things about me, but I am going to assume the best even of strangers and say a short word in my defense. I am not a paid shill. I am not affiliated with any campaign. I was not even sure I was going to vote this year, but I had something of a zen moment the morning I woke up early (an insomnia experience, not unlike right now), saw the headline that someone named Palin might be the VP, and read her bio on wikipedia. It struck a nerve - it was the ordinary, Harry Truman aspect of it all, only a lot better looking version. :) Palin is also of my generation, and I know her kind well, in terms of religion.

Let me put it one more way. I am from Indiana. When the movie Hoosiers came out, I had a goosebumps the entire time I watched it, like it was a movie about my own backyard. Similar thing with Palin. I had seen Joan Walsh on Hardball and knew of her site; I came here, and presto whammo, you can get yourself heard and even enjoy a nice exchange with intelligent people. So what if they don't agree me. That makes it much more fun than an echo chamber, at least for me.