Well, most neocons are Jewish. So, the leftoids, especially the many Jewish ones, get furious and say they are definitely not anti-semites, they say that THEY are just not card carrying members of the pro Israel lobby. Never mind this places them between the sheets with Pat Buchanon. Jewish liberals think that Jewish conservatives must be religious fanatics: the Orthadox with 10 kids per family. When thoughtful, secular Jews depart from the liberal plantation, they must be some kind of evil sell outs, right? Has it ever been true that any prominent neo-cons believe that Israel is perfect? I think it just maddens the left when they point out that the left holds Israel to an impossibe double standard.

Neo-conservative accurately describes people who were once your fellow progressives, like Charles Krauthammer who worked in the JFK Administration, or Leon Kass, who, along with his wife of 50 years, was a Mississippi Freedom Rider. David Brooks was once your typical young and brash University of Chicago liberal grad student. He agreed to debate Milton Friedman and that was that. He noticed that the famous economist lacked fangs: Brooks discovered that Friedman's life work was essentially liberal and humanistic, and made far more sense than all the left wing truisms he used to embrace.

How could so many intelligent humanists (those who want the very best for all of us humans) have changed their minds and set out on a different path? Did their analysis of history and their own life experiences place them on the journey, or was it just some spiteful meanness which forced them to question and move away from liberal orthodoxy?

Is it just more comfortable to dismiss these people than to look at the world with fresh eyes and an open mind?

What would it take for you to change your mind? In this self referential Saloon, don't any of you ever want to question your long held beliefs? Have you ever considered the very brief and very provocative "The Road To Serfdom" by Friedrich Von Hayek? Or is it just far more comfortable to spew hatred at intelligent people who differ with you?

What about the unintended consequences of good intentions?

How much corruption and government waste can you stand?

Do you like what happened to the Civil Rights Movement? Do you like Jesse and Al and Maxine, and do you think Barrack will change all that? Do you still agree with racial quotas?

Is there or is there not a looming showdown with the Islamic Fundamentalists? Will they just go away?

Don't you think that Saddam was a menace with his rape rooms and gassing of entire Kurdish villages and mass Shia graves? How could we have tolerated him in a post 9/11 world?

Can we really tax our way to prosperity for all?

How much value to you place on freedom? Won't we be giving up much of our freedom as government grows ever more powerful?

Sorry, it's late (or early, whatever your preference).

Who is palling around with them?

In regard to Khalidi, here is what it looks like to a Jewish senior citizen in the "real" America (Arizona -- hopefully we will become "unreal" on Tuesday! We elected and re-elected a liberal Democratic governor by a landslide. What's to keep us from going for Obama?): If I had an invitation to hear Khalidi speak, I would attend out of intellectual curiosity (a quality that Gen. Powell praised in Obama). I support the right of Israel to co-exist peacefully with the Palestinians and the Arab countries, and vice versa. I do not support tactics of suppression and 2nd & 3rd class citizenship for the Palestinians that the Israelis learned from their allies the South Africans during the apartheid years.

It is always good to hear or read the thoughts and beliefs of someone you disagree with first hand rather than to read or hear about it through other people's filters and agendas. So, I am not worried about BOM being present at the dinner/speech. If I were planning to be President, Senator, or Secretary of State, I would want to know, from the source, what they think and how they derived their opinions. Look at where the incurious GW has led us!! Oh, yes, doesn't the Bill of Rights guarantee us freedom of association?

You tell us, "here look at this page that defends Kahlidi," which throws around the epithet Zionist a half a dozen times. For these exterminators, a Zionist is anyone who doesn't agree that Israel should be destroyed. And McCain is the problem here?

The arrogant and astoundingly vicious neocons have helped to kill hundreds of thousands of innocent people in the Middle East, in unncessary wars. And they parade about as paragons of virtue! The US needs many more Arab scholars and academics.

Darth has just gone and Vardered all over McCain. McCain with a shit-eating grin on his face is hopping from foot to foot in craven gratitude as he wipes skunk smelling corrosive bile juice of anointment fired at him by a hissing Cheney from glands kept for the purpose that he keeps hidden in his jowls.

When he’s wiped himself off and calmed down from his excitement McCain will receive his orders from a contemptuous flunky.

Saville Row tailors will be flying in to measure him up for a steward’s uniform. He has been ordered to watch the Remains of The Day repeatedly until he both learns his part and becomes fully familiar with his future position.

The Darth has spoken. The Darth has sprayed. All is clear to the court. After careful consideration Darth has decided he’d prefer an aging sexually inactive old white boy to serve the martinis rather than a skinny grinning black one who would screw all the maids leading to all sorts of staff problems with maternity leave.

"In three days we'll choose a new steward for the presidency and begin a new chapter in our history," the Vice President said Saturday morning.

And there you all were thinking you were going to choose a new president for the presidency. Instead you have got John the Steward.