Nobody quoted in the article makes any logical sense, including Clinton. Nobody is persuasive, they're just blathering utter nonsense.

Clinton: "I've apprenticed, and I've learned how to do it. I have watched it being done for eight years ... It took a Clinton to clean up after the first Bush, and it'll take a Clinton to clean up after the second Bush."

"Obama, I don't know," said David Bunda, 44, a letter carrier from Yardley, Pa., whose union is backing Clinton. "I've never heard of him until last year. Then all of a sudden everybody wants to vote for him. We need change, but not to him. I think we need Hillary. . . I liked Bill, yeah," he said. "Even though he lied, I still liked him because the economy was pretty good."

"I couldn't trust Obama to lead the country, not with Iraq, Iran and all that bullshit we got," said Jerry Cullen...

"We have some serious issues, and it scares me that these young people aren't really looking at that," Mary Cullen said. "They're just seeing him as this young fresh face. He's got charisma, but I want more than that."

"He ain't got the clout to do it, and he don't got the hours," Jerry Cullen said. "That woman got 30 hours in her day. Ain't nobody works 30 hours in a day but that kid."

Clinton again: "When it comes to finishing the fight, Rocky and I have a lot in common," she told the labor convention. "I never quit. I never give up."

"I don't think people are racist. I just think they're scared," said Antoinette Yachta . . . "They don't think it's time yet, for even a woman president, but if they had a choice, they'd pick her."

Well, one person made sense:

"People don't understand a lot of the issues," said Marjorie Margolies. "They really do vote on what makes them feel good, what's more believable, who has a more pleasing personality."

War Room is down for the weekend. It would be nice if they started a general thread every weekend, but no such luck. Since this is the latest open thread I thought I'd mention that Mark Penn has quit the Clinton campaign, although his polling firm will keep furnishing "polls and advice." (Story in the link from my name)

Penn did nothing but get Clinton into hot water, as far as I could tell. Good riddance. I guess now he won't get to become Press Secretary in the Clinton II White House.

I don't get why this article was published. Neither the primaries nor the general election is a "direct, plebiscitary system," so there's no story. And if Obama's arguments (which are no different in virtue from Clinton's) are "one of the oldest ploys in the playbook of American politics," then there's no news either. Twelve hundred words saying nothing.

Not everyone is blind or deaf, but a good fraction of people (like me) have hearing loss and impaired vision. Many of them are driving cars. I've had one of them nearly back over me, and yes it was a silent Prius.

I am all for improving the signal-to-noise ratio of the streets. As traffic czar, I would mandate that every new car emit a beep when backing up, just as trucks and buses do. Next, I would mandate that cars stop blatting their horns when the owner walks away--a secondary horn with a mellow tone would be allowable as an opt-in feature. Finally, I would mandate that car alarms transmit a signal to the owners' keysets or cell phones--their choice--and emit no audible noise to the surroundings.

This guy is a breath of fresh air.

You have learned well. I would only add that doing your own taxes isn't all that bad if you maintain a simple life. Over some three decades of self-employment, I've gone through a home purchase, a home office, a home sale, employment, unemployment and a few changes in specialty and managed to do my own taxes the whole time.

Small Time Operator got me off to a good start, and the Well kept me going with high-quality online community. It helps to be an introvert in a good relationship.

I would ratify and double-endorse the importance of exercise and having that occasional beer with lunch. Take in some afternoon baseball. Blow up your TV, as John Prine advised.

Sure, seek like-minded people. But I've found that fellow writers don't float my boat as much as fellow people who love my subject. Stay in touch with your passion, not your coworkers.

Health insurance is the single biggest problem facing American workers. Just imagine how life would change with universal, portable health insurance. Freelancers are in solidarity with everyone else in this respect, no matter how weird we are in other ways.

I'm getting tired of those meaningless links they stick in everything. In this column, for instance, we have "New York," "airport," "flying" and "Paris" hotlinked. Who the fuck CARES?

Bush's legacy should include 9/11 before the war. We seem to have seared that out of our collective brains, but 9/11 could have been prevented. He had fair warning and blew it off to go on his month-long vacation in the Texas heat. Never forget; it's the most horrible mistake of his presidency.

A cross-country flight on American Airlines went quickly thanks to the trivia game, in which you compete with other passengers. Who cares about wing wire bundling?

International Year of Planet Earth is in progress right now. UNESCO and the International Union of Geological Sciences are behind that.

But Earth Day is still useful--litter pickups, children's parades. Some things are simple enough for children to understand, but the grownups need to start raising their game. The grownups need Earth Life, and we need to teach today's children to be tomorrow's engineers and scientists.

When are you coming back for good?

You've made your mark at Salon for sure. Don't be a stranger!