My problem with Joan is never about her sounding even-handed. I've said before that anybody who thinks she strongly pushing one way or the other will have trouble showing actual evidence for it. She can easily point to wonderful and harsh things she has said about each candidate.

But I actually see her latest blog as another example of what I'm not happy about. Unlike the awful Obama supporters who simply disagree with her conclusions and then conclude mean things about her, I don't see the reasoning for her conclusions and I don't see how she justifies using different criteria for Barack and Hillary. I give her the benefit of the doubt. I assume she justifies using different criteria because Barack is probably going to win. But even granting her that reason, I don't agree with it and think it is a very difficult position to actually argue.

You can feel it. But it is hard to justify it.

Anyway, until Barack is running for president, I guess we should expect to see more of her "even-handed" blogging. I treat it with sarcasm because at least then my responses can be taken as seriously as the kinds of arguments people are making (Hillary and obama). Rather than justify, we react.

Joan will continue to set up the weakness-based Barack against the strength-based Hillary and she will share her confusion and concern that more people aren't looking at it this way. I just wish she would justify this kind of comparison.

I really want to copy and paste your entire post, but I imagine that violates some kind of cyber etiquette of which I'm very naive...

The only harsh reaction I had to reading your post was that you seemed to imply that I make no room for Hillary supporters.

No way. I know for a fact that many smart and wonderful people support Hillary. Same with McCain. I get that and have absolutely no problem with it. And you are 100% correct in showing how it has to do with fears and perception, which is always somewhat justified.

Full disclosure: I spend none of my time trying to argue people out of their votes. I like to know how people reason their votes, but I'm happy and fine that everybody has their own thing.

My posts here are in response to this particular context, much of which defined by my response to Joan. Within this context, I am willing to push more because Joan is stepping outside the simple role of citizen sharing her vote and she is sharing her objective take on what we see happening. To that degree, I ask for reasons.

Again, I'm not asking for reasons somebody might like McCain more than Hillary or Hillary more than Barack. I'm asking for reasons that justify the way Joan is applying criteria to each. I think you wrote a great post and, being originally from the Midwest, I can relate.

What is Joan referring to when she says that she would like to be proved wrong?

Oh my Gosh, I don't know the details yet, but I just read that Clinton has announced she has more votes than Barack! That's huge and she wouldn't just be saying it, no matter what you think of her. She doesn't try to use words in clever ways to create impressions, like somebody else we know.

I'm going to run now and see what she means, but the fact that Obama is constantly saying he has the majority of votes is now yet another lie he wants us to swallow. Thanks heavens we have Hillary to set things straight!

I'll be back with Hillary's facts...

Ok, I did some research regarding Hillary's announcement that she now has more votes than Barack. Well, it's simply true. She doesn't even need to get into why she is counting votes from a state in which Barack wasn't even on the ballott because......well.....that would be like acknowledging that it's not as simple as

Hillary now has more votes than Barack in this primary

She does. it's true.

Barack is no longer leading the popular vote.

And don't ask me why Joan approves of this kind of statement by Hillary because Joan has made clear that she wishes to make Barack stronger by focusing on his weaknesses and Hillary's strengths.

It takes courage for Hillary to come out and admit that she (Hillary) leads the vote count now because it puts her in the position of the leader. Now Joan will have switch her strategy and begin comparing Hillary's weaknesses against Barack's strengths. It's so confusing. But what is clear is that we have a new leader in this primary and we probably wouldn't have realized it if said leader hadn't led us to the knowledge herself!