apolloscreed, you make a few powerful points:

#1. yes, people who read Walsh and then wish to stop because they don't like what she is saying are like the worst of the worst republicans. If you start reading Walsh you better not finish until Walsh finishes first. And if you strongly disagree with Walsh that is even more reason to keep reading!

#2. yes, if we knew that Walsh had at one time had great respect for a person that the media could easily decimate THEN (and only then) would we be justified in going after Walsh's character and really speaking out-loud about our concerns for her ulterior motives. But I personally don't know if anybody Walsh has ever admired who turned out to have said things that could be fodder for the media, so....

#3. yes, forget about Hillary for one second and ask yourself if you've ever heard of Rev. Wright!!!! If you can't say you haven't heard of Rev. Wright and the fact that Barack sought guidance from him, then say YES to a possible future in which Hillary might win the election! I hate to say it, but the more I read article after article on Wright (and see him on the news while I'm working out), the easier it is to realize that Barack might not win against McCain. The fact is, Hillary might! This election is way to important for us to fixate on might nots when we have the option of a great big Clinton-sized MIGHT

Yes she Might!

doesn't anybody consider it a double standard that while Barack is getting all this attention for having distanced himself from a narcissistic african-american preacher, Hillary is not being given the chance to address questions that have been posed to her?

Barack, for seemingly no good reason, is getting everybody's attention over some other guy'srediculousness and now nobody is listening to what Hillary wants to say about how she would deal diplomatically with Iran or what she really remembers about not being shot at.

As a woman I'm not saying it is just because Hillary is a woman that she has to work so hard to get the country's attention, but as a relatively white woman I am suggesting that if Barack wasn't black (and, therefore, less affected- in this primary- by prejudice)he would be having a much harder time getting people's attention.

I think it is a double standard. Hillary simply forgot she wasn't shot at! We all have slips like that: just yesterday I was asked to speak at a conference on PTSD and I got up and told a story about how my first experience snow skiing ended with me crashing into a tree, breaking both arms and going unconscious for a few hours. People loved my talk! Ok, so later this guy (a COMEDIAN) who was skiing with me that day reminded me that I did not crash into a tree. I guess a ski instructor had told to me to be careful not to crash. Anyway, I misspoke. Now I remember clearly that i did not actually experience the trauma I told people about.

Anyway, rather then listen to me all day, why don't we just give Barack and his preacher all our attention. Make sure to keep ignoring the one woman running for president.

when i said i was now going to vote for hillary, i really just said it to help Barack beat McCain. But don't tell anybody or it takes away the power...

also, while I'm obviously being facetious in my recent posts, I honestly don't think Joan is pulling for Hillary. I just don't happen to agree with Joan's strategy for covering the primary. I actually have great respect for Joan, but I just consider her approach to be counter productive to Barack and Hillary and political journalism in general. That said, I happily acknowledge that when Barack is running against McCain and I'm overwhelmed by the way the media will be framing the "important" issues, I'll probably eagerly be jumping into Joan's blog to take shelter from the storm.

I really do believe we'll see Joan switch gears in a major way once the primary is over. And by "major" I'm not just saying that she'll have wonderful things to say about Barack. I bet that the actual form of her coverage will shift in a big way and Joan will begin really looking at the reasons behind the framing of the news cycle. And I also bet she'll pay much more attention to the practical realities of the candidates policies and chances of making them real. Even though Barack and Hillary agree on many policies, there is good reason to seek solid analysis on what we could expect about how each of them would go about enacting their ideas. Anyway, from your post I can see that you've seen the truth and, so, enjoy your freedom!