I don't know if anyone else on this thread has already made this point, but if so, it's worth making again: this is a classic Karl Rove trap. It's one thing if Kossacks speculate on this--much as I love Daily Kos, I keep my "partisan" filter firmly in place when reading most of the postings. Conservatives have their own blogs, and the more skeptical among them (there must be some, somewhere) probably do the same.

The McCain campaign has already done something like this once, back when the New York Times broke a story about McCain getting too cozy with lobbyists, including one that was young, attractive, and female. Because there was much less substantiation for the hanky-panky stuff, the Republicans were able to scream bloody murder about how they were being slandered, and the New York Times quickly backed off *all* allegations, including those that had real substance. No one will touch it now.

Oh, and remember the Bush Texas Air Guard brouhaha? Also cooked up to discredit stories about our C-in-C's less-than-honorable military career. I wouldn't be surprised if the National Enquirer were similarly being set up. Consider this scenario:

1. They start investigating based on a rumor. The McCain campaign angrily calls it out and denies it, although nearly every week there's some speculation on the front cover that Dubya's off the wagon and Laura's going to divorce him on January 21, and as far as I know no one bats an eyelash.

2. The business partner hurriedly moves to have his divorce records sealed. There *must* be something there!

3. Suddenly, the story fades away, and poor wittle Sarah gets all kinds of sympathy for the way those mean, bad librul eleet jurnalists have attacked her and the Holy Family.

4. No one wants to touch the real stories--her petty vindictiveness, her willingness to tangle family matters with government business, the fact that she's an earmark queen, that wackadoodle video of her talking in church about the End Times, the dreadful way she managed things in Wasilla while mayor--oh, and the polar bears! She won't protect the polar bears! Now, why have I heard nothing about the polar bears? Anyways, total silence suddenly drops over the whole tawdry mess like a blue velvet drape in the DOJ, and the McCain campaign gets complete control over her image.

Don't fan the flames, folks. The mainstream media are gullible sheep in search of the next succulent, green patch of scandal, and to lure them in. the Republicans will plant this stuff from the pasture right up to the slaughterhouse door. If it's true, we'll hear about it. Meanwhile, there's plenty of substantiated dirt on Sarah Palin's career to demonstrate why she's so unfit.

Surprise, surprise. Shame on you, Bill Maher, for attacking the weakest and most vulnerable among us. That's right, the "intellectually challenged."

They should not be confused with those undeserving so-called "developmentally disabled" people who are constantly suckling from the welfare teat and may possibly be hiding the fact that they watch the news and know something about the election and may even know who they want to vote for. Why, I've seen those frauds in polling places, filling out ballots and flashing a voter registration card--tsk, tsk! Meanwhile, the intellectually challenged suffer, and struggle, and triumph in total obscurity, unheralded, uncomplaining.

And yet, they're all around you, living normal lives, even, in some cases, making boatloads more money than you. On the radio! On the talking heads circuit! In the statehouses of Georgia, Mississippi, and Alabama! At the helm of General Motors! Why, even our own President and many of his staff are members of this proud, suffering group!

They have so much to teach us--their boldness, their determination, their inveterate incuriosity about the world should be an inspiration to us. Shame on you for driving a wedge between ordinary Americans. I'm calling your sponsors.

When my cousin and brother met for the first time, they were both four-year-old boys. My brother was kind of small and slight and sensitive. My cousin was built like a linebacker. Upon finding himself face to face with my brother, he backed up, got a running start, and headbutted my brother in the stomach. It seems funny now (and my brother doesn't remember the incident at all) but when it happened, we were horrified and my uncle and aunt were mortified.

He's had some discipline problems in the past. I think at one point he was even diagnosed with ADD. But he's turned out to be a good kid, and last time I saw him, he was running a successful mechanic shop working on high-end cars and motorcycles and was engaged to a pretty elementary school teacher.

I don't pretend to know what's going on with this kid--normal phase? problem that can be treated? But with concerned parents willing to face up to the fact that he's not their perfect little angel, he's not consigned to eternal dickhood by any means.

Just sayin'.