Yet another enjoyable Keillor piece. But I wonder...how does he get permission to talk on his cell phone on an airplane?

Replace every mention of "white" in that quote with "woman" (or "man" for that matter) and this wouldn't even be a topic for discussion.

It's ridiculous that when the subject of race comes up it is the proverbial hot potato that generates volumes of articles like this one. But it seems anyone can say anything they like about gender - negatives about women, in particular - and few seem to care.

What is wrong with us that we are so scared of discussing race that the mere mention has the zealots up in arms??

Since when is Minnesota a swing state? More years have passed since the state went to a republican presidential candidate than any other state. (It's the only state Mondale carried in 1984).

We may have our fair share of "blue-collar whites" as well as a higher than average church-going population, but we are also one of the most progressive states in the country.

Just because we're surrounded by red states and swing states, Minnesota's voting record could not be more different.

I'd bet a year's salary that whoever the Dems choose will win Minnesota in November.

Johnson is from South Dakota, Dorgan from North Dakota.

Seems like whoever deemed that a mullet is using a rather broad definition of the style. But anyway...

It doesn't matter who McCain's running mate is. He could choose God as his VP and he still wouldn't win this election.

McCain will win some states, but Minnesota won't be one of them. We have the proud distinction of having gone the longest without going for a Republican in a national election (only state Mondale won in 1984).

I guess I fit the definition (minus the celeb status) of having 'married down.' It makes me sad that such a definition even exists (as does 'marrying up'). Apparently, we haven't come far enough to consider that marrying one's 'equal' might mean more than just money, looks or fame. How about marrying for equal love, respect and partnership?

I've been a "cellphone-only voter" since 2004. I've also never missed the chance to vote in a presidential or midterm election in the 16 years I've been of voting age. I even vote in most of the random local elections. I'm also a market researcher and it pains me to see how out of touch these pollsters are with consumer behavior.

Tracy, if you hadn't given away your age, I would've guessed you are at least a few years older. I'm 10 years your senior and I was enjoying my sexual freedom well past your age.

You seem to have a mature perspective on this issue and I applaud you for this piece. It may be a bit of a brag, as others mentioned, but that makes your point even more salient. We should be free to take pride in our sexuality rather than being ashamed of it.

A one-night stand is not different than a several nights stand. They both start out the same way, do they not? Who ever knows that one night will turn into several?

What I've found, through many variations of casual (and non-casual) sexual relationships is that problems only arise when the two parties involved want different things.

Toward the end of my singlehood (before I met my husband 4 years ago), I almost started the believe the line of bull that withholding sex will make a man want to date me. I even tried it. I really believe there's more to it than that. If a man lost interest because I 'gave in' to sex 'too soon,' why is that someone I would want to be with?

yes, you are annoying.

without fans there would be no market for sports.

any thinking person knows that the PUMAs, et al are/were never up for grabs by just anyone and certainly not by Hillary Clinton's political opposite. They may be short-sighted, but by and large they are not stupid.

Clearly, McCain is even more idiotic than we could ever have imagined.

I'm not sure I've ever disagreed with Cary so vehemently before. Either this guy needs to get a job that starts later in the day (night shift, perhaps?) or he needs to grow up and start acting like an adult. If everyone acted like he does and came and went as they pleased without any regard for time or schedule, the world would come to a screeching halt.

So much for taking the high road.

Until now, the multitude of reasons I could feel good about being a life-long Democrat and Obama supporter included the fact that we refused to stoop to their level.

Let's re-elevate the dialogue to higher level, please.

I'm a white rural American. Techically, I haven't lived in what would be considered rural American for 10 years. But that's where I was raised and that's who I am at my core.

I, as well as the majority of my white rural American family, friends and acquaintances plan to vote for Obama. It's his party and ideas - we are Democrats, many of us life-long, and when Obama became the nominee there was no doubt he would have our votes.

If you look at a county-by-county map of presidential elections, you'll see pockets dominated by Democrats. These counties are so small - entire populations of 2,000 or so - that they're not enough to impact the state.

Please understand that all rural people are not the same. The racists and ignoramuses profiled in this article and elsewhere are not representative of rural Americans as whole.