There are some "cities" in Texas that are just plain butt-ugly: Abilene, Lubbock, Midland, Odessa, Waco, Wichita Falls, the list goes on.

I could say that the people who live in these cities choose to live there for the same reason they chose to vote for the Current Occupant: because they don't know any better. But that would go against the gentle spirit of GK's column, which I wouldn't want to do. And BTW, I'm really curious about how GK came to be in Abilene in the first place. Seriously. Big book-signing at the Abilene Barnes and Noble, Garr? Sorry. Couldn't help it.

I'm one of those Texans who just doesn't "get" West Texas.

But the native West Texans love it there. And they can lay claim to one of America's true literary geniuses: Larry McMurtry.

In closing, I'd like to quote some of the verses to the old Country-Western ballad "Abilene." Maybe GK can sing it on PHC sometime:

Abilene, Abilene

Prettiest town I ever seen.

Folks down there don't treat you mean

In Abilene, my Abilene.

I sit alone most every night

Watch them trains roll out of sight

Wish that they were carryin' me

To Abilene, my Abilene.

Crowded city, ain't nothin' free

Nothin' in this town for me

Wish to God that I could be

In Abilene, my Abilene.

I told you not to get me started . . .

"I'm not sure there is an afterlife. OK. If there is one, here's what I think it is. I think it's whatever you think you're going to get." Stephen King

At the time my father died, about 5 years ago, I hadn't been thinking about the Afterlife much. I'd decided I didn't believe in Hell, or Satan, but maybe there was some kind of Heaven.

When my father, a fundamenalist Christian, died, I remember having the same thought, almost verbatim, that King has in the quote above. Here's what I thought: "Father is now in Heaven, because that's where he wanted to go after he died. The Heaven he is in is exactly as he had pictured it while he was alive."

This doesn't make sense on an intellectual level and yet I suppose it's an effective intellectual solution for people who, for whatever reason, would rather not think about the Afterlife. I can't speak for King, of course, but for myself, I have many obsessions, but the Afterlife is not one of them.

I copied and pasted this from the AP story:

"Todd, of College Station, Texas . . . . "

College Station, Texas is where Texas A&M University, home of the "Aggies," is located. Aggies aren't exactly known for their intellectual brilliance. In fact, Phil Gramm, McPain's former Economics Advisor, use to be an Economics Professor at Texas A&M.

Case closed.

Try to let the Obama polls go. Switch to the Al Franken polls. The latest Rasmussen poll has Franken 4 pts ahead of Coleman!

On election night, if Obama wins Virginia, and I think he will, it will be all over for McPain. Since Va. is on the east coast (duh), we political junkies will be in for a long, boring night unless we have backup races to follow.

Not that we won't be celebrating the Obama victory, but we'll need a backup race to follow. That's why I'm suggesting the Franken/Coleman race.

. . . when McCain was telling his first wife that he was leaving her for a rich trophy wife after his first wife had waited faithfully for him for over 5 years . . . .

The real story of this election, which I haven't seen told anywhere, is the absolutely amazing, miraculous, brilliantly-designed-and-executed Obama campaign--ESPECIALLY--the so-called "grassroots" part of it. From now on until Election Day, if you tried to volunteer to work at an Obama headquarters you would probably be politely informed that there was just not enough room in the place for any more volunteers.

My mother has been working daily at an Obama office in Texas--not because she or any of the Obama people think he is going to win Texas, but because from there, she and her co-workers can call potential voters anywhere in the country. Finally: a positive use of "outsourcing."

And I'm not even going to mention the tons of campaign contribution money that Obama is still raking in every day.

Meanwhile, back at the Maverick's ranch, the McPain grassroots workers, what's left of them anyway, are just sitting around trying to figure out new ways to hoax and scam their fellow repubs.

My grandaddy used to say, "The harder you work the luckier you get."

If McPain and the repubs get blown out, and I predict they will, they will chalk it all up to "bad luck," whether it be "Bush Fatigue," "the Financial Crisis," or whatever. In a million years, it would never occur to the repubs that they lost because they were too lazy to get up off their racist asses, put one foot in front of the other, and do some actual grassroots campaigning. And it's too late now, "my friends."

Tough luck.

As another poster said, quoting William Snakeskin, "There's a method to his madness."

Crist could be trying to do away with long lines at the voting booths because he KNOWS that NOBODY in their right mind would stand in line for more than 5 minutes to vote for McPain.

Also, the more votes that are cast in Fla, the more time they can take to "count" them (i.e. rig them) on Election Night.

On the other hand, photos of long lines of voters remind me too much of New Orleans in the aftermath of Katrina, and that is a nightmare I'll never get over.

Just to watch him LIE . . .

(Thank ya very much!)