If what these 13 did was not a crime, then why did they jail seven low level reservists, 1 who is still in Leavenworth? I welcome a truth commission-this is laundry we definately need to air.

I couldn't handle watching Fixed news during this campaign....but watched some last night and more this morning. We all have to remember that while Karl Rove has found a home on Fox, he also ignored a Congressional subpoena. If you or I tried to do the same, we'd be in jail. I was so pleased that the numbers were beyond refute. No hanging chads, no Supreme Court, no voting machines to calibrate. We spoke, we voted, we kicked butt. I was equally undone by the celebrity given to Tom DeLay - another politician who left disgrace in his wake. The right has to look squarely in the mirror with a level of intellectual and spiritual honesty to see who they have become. They are not the party of lean government, fiscal responsibility.....they have become a party of divisiveness and hateful innuendo. My greatest wish is that the Gov from Alaska fades into the snow.....and that the Republican party re-invents itself to something that is policy rather than culturally driven. That is a debate worth having - the Rev. Wright, Ayers, Kalidi, smarm is a thing of the past - which was part of the message to the Republicans last night.

In response to the mention of the Bay of Pigs, Kennedy evidently was not alone in judgement errors there. My now deceased father-in-law was there as a CIA operative and his insider perspective was "there was enough blame to go around".

I sat in my office yesterday and watched Barack Obama endorsed by Ted Kennedy, Patrick and Caroline Kennedy and was moved - again. As an Obama supporter since the very beginning I see a principled, strong leader who is inclusive and transparent. I have been moved to participate in my own democracy and it will take all of us, together, to solve the myriad of profound issues we face as a country. That is the difference in these candidates for me. As one of the blades of grass in this grassroots movement, the campaign constantly reminds me to remain on point and positive - to draw no negative comparisons. I have tried to stay true to that ethic. No campaign is without vigorous discourse as it should be. What America needs is a leader who will inspire us to be better citizens, who will motivate our youth to action, and one who will put a face on our country that tells our shrinking world that we as a nation are capable of change, of strength in ideas and solutions, and remind us that regardless of our roots or our religion we are one people and that we have a powerful voice in our own destiny. That voice has been muted for many years because of the apathy created by a sense of powerlessness, by scandal and lies. We are our country's greatest natural resource and while experience matters, what matters more is leadership that is bound to character and ideals. American democracy is not easy and depends on us individually and collectively to be brilliant. I support Barack Obama because I am again inspired by him to be an American.

I have been reading Anne Lamott's books for years. I have probably given away dozens of copies of Bird by Bird, many to the very creative, lovely and wild teenage writers who spend time at my home. I have a 17 year old son who is a gifted, well read, outspoken musician and songwriter headed off to college in Boston in the Fall and all of his friends "camp" at our home. I have been a sober (almost 20 years) single parent for most of his life.

With every page I am validated that imperfect is really okay, that although I have been "putting food on the table" doing work that is not my passion, I am inspired by Anne Lamott to pursue my passions even if the effort is a complete flop and even if the work only happens in tiny little snippets.

I just received my copy of Grace (eventually) and look forward to a long, uninterrupted afternoon to dive in.