All right! Now we have magic underwear to go with expensive underwear and transgender underwear. Who's next?

I would laugh at the state of the GOP, but the last time I laughed about the clowns they put up was 1988. Now I just worry about the lack of intelligence in the American electorate.

What's all this talk about Jackson's appointment likely to lead to a Repug taking this seat in the next election? As I recall, the Repugs couldn't even field a candidate in 2004 to run against Obama. Didn't they bring in Alan Keyes from MD? I don't think I would get my panties in a bunch worrying about that crowd.

Had McCain run this ad, Obama would have countered with a hard Hagee hit and probably doubled down on Palin's protection from witchcraft. Ultimately, I think the swarm of negativity hurts McCain more than Obama.

We built many miles of bike paths and bike lanes in Davis, CA during the '70s and the city continues to add to them. Unfortunately, they are largely abandoned now. It got so bad in the '90s that my family was known as the "bike family" because we were the last holdovers who wouldn't use a car.

So, Andrew, I don't think it is a lack of infrastructure that holds us back. Don't get me wrong; I would love to see much more bike-based infrastructure built and maintained. Just don't assume that your rides will be any less lonely if we put it in.

As usual, most of the commenters lament our urban/suburban development style and use it as an excuse for staying in their cars. As I said earlier, all the infrastructure in the world won't make a difference if we refuse to take the initiative and bear a little discomfort.

Here is my take on why individuals end up in a steel wheelchair as their primary means of movement. When you are physically unfit (like almost all Americans), a short (5-30 mile) bike ride is exhausting, time-consuming and painful. Thus, unfit Americans cannot even imagine enjoying getting from A to B without polluting. For those few who are fit, if you start using a steel wheelchair for some of your transit desires, without a personal commitment to not make it a bad habit, it will initially be very comfortable. At this time, you can take it or leave it, but it is very seductive. Soon, you will be using it almost exclusively and your previously healthy body will have disappeared and been replaced with one that can no longer hack the rigors of moving under your own power. Congratulations, you are now on the road to diabetes, cancer, high blood pressure, obesity and heart disease.

Of course, it is not just the physical demands of cycling that make it a bit too difficult for Americans. Over the past three decades I have noticed a lot more terrorist-type behavior directed at cyclists from motorists. It has gotten to the point that I rarely go a fortnight without being told to "get the f*** off the road" or receiving a hand sign that indicates I'm number one (sadly, the signer has usually lost the use of his/her index finger). Interestingly, the more cyclists present, the better the car-bound behavior.

So, if any of you want to create a bike-friendly city, get out of your car and help make it happen. Don't whine about weather (my elderly uncle commuted by bike in Nome and Fairbanks) or unruly drivers (you're probably one of them, stop driving and there is one less). To borrow from by betters, be the change you wish to see.

If you are correct, and I think you are, then now is the time for all patriots to stop driving and stop shopping at stores like Wal-Mart that stock predominantly foreign-made products. Do we have any patriotic Americans left?

Three decades ago a hapless physical plant worker at a large California university flushed while seated. Unfortunately, his co-workers had made a slight mistake and crossed the steam line into the supply line (their version of a practical joke). He did heal.

While the denizens of the South would probably not understand, it would be nice if Obama explained the pressing need for a gas tax and used some of his political capital to get it implemented. He was noteworthy for talking to the public as though we are intelligent adults during the campaign, why not continue? The tax could start at something like $0.25/gal and expand from there. I really think people would go for it if the money was earmarked for building mass transit and ped/bike infrastructure to help reduce our (mostly psychological) reliance on two-ton wheelchairs. Our current crises (financial, employment, environmental) will not be resolved through cowardice or Clintonian triangulation.

How interesting that the anecdotal patient is a child with asthma. One of the major causes of our skyrocketing childhood asthma rates is exposure to environmental toxins. These toxins are largely produced by industrial and consumer activities (Look towards the delta from Pleasant Hill and you will find refineries; look towards Mt. Diablo and you will see particulates and photochemical smog), both of which decrease during a deep recession. This child's health problems may be directly related to both the dot.com boom and the following housing booms that lead to massively increased levels of air pollution in her local environment.