Joan, did you read, Dreams from my father by Obama? This book seems to shed light on his comment about the excesses of the sixties more than anything for me. He was talking about his own family. His parents were from different continents, cultures, ethnic and religious backgrounds and yet married and had a child and separated--all before he even had a chance to enter kindergarten (where he wrote the famous essay about wanting to become president.)

Maybe his mother could have helped him bridge this gap with voters her age--helped him to talk their/your language and to meet their/your concerns.

Some of the excesses of the sixties were great. Maybe Obama is one of them. An interracial child who wouldn't have been born and raised in the way he was at any previous time. But he's right that some of those "excesses" must have led a lot of people to turn to the party of "law and order" (Ha--I say that sarcastically of course--the scoundrels) the party of Reagan.

This fear of Obama I read frequently as a fear of the new. When I read his book though (I read Clinton's too--in fact I read her book first) I see a genuine desire in him to think independently of the old guard on either side and to find new thoughts/solutions. I can see why this is scaring some of the left or there is a fear that because he talks sometimes like the new moderate--that he's not committed to the values of his mother's generation.

Maybe if she were here, she could help him to reach over this divide. (And I wonder what she would have to say about Clinton & co attacking her son--I wonder if she would become as blustery as Bill defending Hill--probably not.) But it would be interesting to see Barack's mother and Clinton in the same room. I would kind of like to think that they could argue with one another forcefully as strong feminists do, and with interesting results.

that you are the same age as Barack's mother! ooops. I was speaking "your" to the generation that has been arguing back and forth on these threads. How embarassing!

Instead of sticking to the issues, I want to make a purely instinctual case for/against each of the main contenders.

Clinton: what I like best about her is that she reminds me of the "nerd" in the Mac commercials who you like better than the cool guy. (I own a mac, but I've always felt a special affinity for those IBM guys). I also like her sense of loyalty. I get the feeling that IF she is on your side, she is always on your side.

what I like least about her: her inability to admit it when she is wrong (ie her war vote).

Obama: what I like best about him: his writing ability. A man who can write some of his own speeches (like the anti-war one and the convention speech) may be able to compete with the power of someone like Lincoln. Extraordinary. (His delivery doesn't hurt him either. He could probably read the back of cereal boxes and move people to tears). I also like: his senate record. (Writing is not a bad skill when you're writing legislation).

what I like least about him: his not standing up on the telecom issue where this could really help him (and the country) right now. It worries me that he might be already becoming too "changed" (instead of an intrument of change) by Washington politics.

(I didn't ever say he didn't) and one of them is/was 26. But I have read that he wrote the convention speech of 2004 himself, and his Iraq war speech of 2002 himself, both of which he gave before he became a Senator in Washington.

He also wrote two best selling books--as far as I have been able to research, sans ghost writer.

So I still argue that when left to his own devices, he is fine. Better than okay. He isn't just relying on the 26 year old (and you forgot to mention the other guy who worked for Kennedy who therefore cannot be 26).

Sometimes I think that people do not want to give Barack Obama for any accomplishment, not even his writing skills--which are not supposed to get you far in this world. (Although I once had a writing teacher tell me: good writing is good thinking).

I am most likely not voting for her in the general election. That ticket would be too pro-war for me. This doesn't have anything to do with Obama. Clinton would have to pick someone that doesn't make me think that we are going to be involved in ever-loving war for ever and ever and ever, for me to vote for her.

And I'm not a kid. I'm just tired of the madness of the Democratic Party and the Clinton supporters. And the wars.

Your news is old news. It was covered in Newsweek weeks ago--and the person who wrote that email either got fired or resigned and Obama told them nothing like that goes out. Ever from his campaign.

Please don't try to take the mudslinging and get Clinton absolved by the "everybody does it" argument. That's not an excuse that she should be trying to use.