Seems a shame that the blogosphere, Salon included felt the need to devolve into MJ mania. One of the reasons I prefer blogs over the MSM is cause I don't like this type of pathetic pathos. I'd hoped on the blogs there'd be just a blurb mentioning the fact of his passing, but no, on the front page at least 3 items pop out, part of the circus.

Sanford's affair began over a year ago.

But just for the bragging rights at my local bar. What's Pelosi's number?

As I'm sure the right-wing pundit/blogosphere will claim, being overturned by the scotus proves she's not qualified. While on the absolute most shallow level I can see why someone might think that except people need to keep in mind, 4 of the justices agreed with her courts decision. So if she's not qualified, than neither are the 4 who agreed with her.

Even by the standards of American politics, Giuliani is a truly loathsome individual.

Time and space preclude me from listing his many offenses (and I truly mean 'offenses') so I'll just use one of his worst as an example: He tried to gain personal advantage from 9/11.

Since these 'birthers' are presumably also 'pro-life' I just know they wouldn't want to terminate his presidency right?

Seems to me, monster though he may be, its questionable as to whether being raise by Joe, is better or worse than being raised by MJ.

There goes her presidential run. Assuming her story stands, how will she stand up to the very valid criticism that she couldn't even fulfill one term as governor because of medial pressure, so how could she be president.

amateur sex tape!!!!!

That they'd be impressed with her shirking her responsibilities due to pressure from the press. Assuming of course, as I'm sure her base would, that she's even telling the truth.

The way I see it, is if they believe her and feel she's justified for quitting due to negative press then they are also admitting she's unready to hold public office.

While I do agree that its plausible that she thought this was a good idea in prep for a '12 run, I think she'd never make it out of the primaries. Too easy for opponents to run commercials showing clips of her resigning due to negative press, calling her out for shirking her responsibilities and asking if the country could afford to have her resign inexplicably if she were president. Ya, her base likes her, but there's a lot more than base needed to win.

Is that if no scandal is pending, that she did this thinking that it would be a politically smart move. AND it didn't occur to her until afterwards that people might not take her resigning due to pressure from the press, positively.

So if you believe her, and think her reasons for resigning are good ones, aren't you also admitting she's unfit for any kind of high office? I mean, its not like the press gets any easier the higher up you go. Who would vote for her, knowing she's liable to quit when the going gets tough?

About the narcissism thing. Since people are talking about it not in the glib sense as its usually used but as an actual diagnosis of mental illness, its important to remember that her reasons for leaving need not be rational. Could just be that the national stage was not validating her delusions of her own self-importance, so she's merely retreating to place she can more easily enforce her delusions without contradiction.

Still, I hope its a big scandal (come on bdsm home sex tape about to be released on the internet!!!!)

If, and I mean IF newspapers offer anything of value, then letting them die, will free that value to go where its appreciated without being sullied by the corporate control.

"Why should anyone, least of all a valuable contributing member of society, have to pass the hat to pay the doctor?"

Because our society has failed.

Besides, when you're willing to forgive the people to whom we've entrusted all the power of our society for torturing, why worry about a little thing like healthcare? Perhaps if those tortured in our names could play a good ragtime it would matter more, hmm?

Personally I find being murdered, coldly, for the little cash one may have in their pockets to be a greater offense than being murdered by someone who felt they had cause truly hate. However I think, and I could be wrong here, the purpose of federal hate crime laws is to provide an alternative avenue for justice in cases where frequently the focus of a hate crime, being a minority in the community where the crime took place, is potentially denied justice because the community may be prone to support the defendant as a member of the majority, rather than the plaintiff (victim, as it were) who by definition is hated.

Was it funny?

They neglect to take into account, other people are smart too. In their planning and scheming, they literally forget to take into account that other people may have brains, even more brains. A common trait I believe amongst people who make this common error, is also to blame those who've had the awful temerity to ruin your plans by failing to be stupid. It gets taken very personally.