This one touches on G. Gordon Liddy, the AIP, and Palin's associations.

1. Here is my view of Liddy. I grew up a baseball fan, a Pete Rose fan. I would like to see him rehabilitated and placed in the Hall of Fame. But I agree, he can't be part of a team again. Once a gambling risk, always a gambling risk. The game can't afford that risk.

I would never want to see someone with Liddy's Watergate past work in an administration, rehabilitated or not. Too much risk. I would also be wary of anyone affiliated with the gun episodes of Waco and Ruby Ridge in the 1990's, as Liddy apparently was (in radio talk show discussions).

That said, someone will need to tell me: what is the connection between Liddy and McCain, and what does it tell us that is bothersome? Are they personal friends; would Liddy be part of McCain's administration; are any of Liddy's fringe views properly attributable to McCain? Honestly, I don't know. I haven't studied it. I'm willing to look at it differently, depending on what turns up. If someone makes the case to me, I will listen.

2. I might agree to a point there may be some concern re: the AIP and Todd and Sarah Palin, to the extent they can be tied to any gun zaniness back in the 90's. I haven't been able to glean, from MSM reporting, exactly what the AIP is all about. I understand there is this Fowler guy and some zany gun statements in the 90's (I saw a salon post or two on it), but I could not see exactly how the dots connected. Like I said, guns, bombs, zealotry, militia movements, abortion clinic bombers -- it all scares me. I might be frightened by the Palins, too, if someone could convince me - with bona fide evidence, not just whimsical speculation - that they are part of that crowd.

As far as the "independence" part of the AIP, here again I must confess some ignorance. The MSM reporting I have seen said it is focused on autonomy over oil resources, not secession. This should be a fairly easy thing to resolve: just look at their platform. If Palin is sending taped messages to a group whose platform calls for secession, I would agree that's a problem. Would want to know more about it, for sure. If we're talking about oil autonomy, I don't know what I would think without reading more.

Some autonomy movements are better regarded than others. We generally celebrate what happened in Spain after Franco's death. Some of them, like the Bayernpartei in Bavaria, are more eccentric than threatening. Again, someone needs to make the case to me - with evidence - about the AIP before I can decide whether to become alarmed. The MSM stories I read did not have that effect.