I can't stand Palin but I betcha she has a tutor for the kids who are of school age and who are not in a schoolroom situation. I think there are probably laws about that in Alaska. My question is not whether Trig is being used as a prop but about how badly affected Trib is by his Down Syndrome. I watched him being held by his sister and there was an unnatural stillness about that baby.

We should not be ragging on Sarah Palin about Trig but should be hoping that the provisions made for all the kids are age-appropriate and that the campaign has made sure that the kids are taken care of. Young kids usually have young Secret Service agents taking care of them and are not subjected to the constant gawking that their campaigning parents experience. I am sure they have ample privacy. The last thing the McCain campaign needs is accusations of child abuse.

I will miss Bill the Cat. His freaked-out persona became a symbol of part of my life. Bye, Bill.

SOB!!!!

That was the word that kept coming to mind as I listened to General Powell's statement this morning. He outlined the reasons he had for endorsing Obama and I could see this good man redeeming himself as he spoke and finally breaking free of what may have been a nightmare for him.

The present horror of a war has confirmed the Powell Doctrine every day. It would be long over had we done what the General advised and there would be fewer American (and Iraqi) deaths.

I have the feeling that Nancy Sue is a sex worker between tricks who is having fun with us by pretending to be profoundly stupid. She's waiting for her next job and she's bored.

Pat Buchanan lost his way long, long ago.

That said, I watched the discussion with a combination of amusement and disgust. Pat can't accept the invevitable -- that there is a non-racial motive in Powell's statement (his very respectful and regretful statement) about McCain/Palin. It's not only that he cares deeply about the country but also that he is redeeming his own legacy. He was horribly used by Bush and Cheney. To an extent, he allowed himself to be but his honor was sullied and used.

Pat has had a racial thing going for a long time. He has a major anti-Semitic element to his nature, something Bill Buckley pointed out years ago, an obsession with Jews and Israel that is not healthy for his intellectual freedom. I blame that in part on his traditionalism, a very strong element in his background.

That said, I admire Pat Buchanan and I really admire his ability to see trends. He also regrets the war in Iraq, something surprising but delightful.

I wouldn't have wanted to be Lieberman this year on Yom Kippur. I hope he called Harry Reid and asked for forgiveness because that's what you have to do if you have committed sins against your people -- and the Democrats are supposedly his people.

I don't hold his support of McCain against him if he feels that the war in Iraq is justified. I do hold his support of Reverend Hagee against him. He holds this anti-Semite up as the new Moses because Hagee is pro-Israel. He's not pro-Jews, though, and Lieberman should be a lot smarter than to endorse the pig. The Reverend thinks Jesus will slaughter the Jews when (and if) he returns if they don't convert. That means Joe Lieberman. Of course, Joe could convert to evangelical Christianity and remove himself from the Jewish people. I wouldn't have wanted to be him on Yom Kippur.

If it was a better time in America, if the economy was working, if Bush didn't have such a poisonous legacy, if we were not embroiled in two wars, one of which shouldn't even be happening, maybe the poison tactics would work better. We are in a national crisis and the country just doesn't have the time nor does it have the appetite.

Joe seems to have cornered the "Jewish" thing. I'm Jewish and I can't stand him but there seems to be a fear that standing up to Joe Lieberman and tagging him as a creep sounds vaguely anti-Jewish. Nonsense. Joe Lieberman has stood up for anti-Semites like Hagee, whom he called another Moses. I almost barfed.

He has stood up for and encouraged the most radical Israeli elements rather than siding with those who want an honorable peace that protects Israel. He has, by his behavior, held Judaism up for ridicule.

Yes, there are some anti-Semitic voices criticizing Lieberman as "the Senator from Tel Aviv" but he's not that. Israel is not as important to him as is Joe Lieberman.

It's not the idea of having a new wardrobe of "dressed for success" clothes. That makes sense to me. She is being interviewed for the job of VP and she ought to be dressed for it. I am more concerned about the cost of that wardrobe. It would have been more politic for the campaign to have done all her shopping at Macy's or a simliar mid-level store and to have spent a good deal less. The idea that her child has a Vuitton bag is bothersome, more so than that her baby has a bunch of new clothes.

If she is being sold as a working-class heroine, it's a bad move for her and for McCain.