So it was just after 10 when I realized that I still has to get some stuff off the table on the deck from dinner. I walk out, notice a few slices of cucumber still sitting on a plate, so i chucked them out into the yard (I'm mowing the lawn tomorrow anyway), and one of them goes into the rose bushes.

And it hit something. Which moved.

So I'm peering out into the darkness, trying to see which of the neighborhood cats was in my yard.

But it wasn't a cat.

I always wanted a pony!

Barack Obama is in my hometown tonight, joined by special guest John Edwards! How freakin' exciting. That explains the extra sense of disingenuousness I felt driving past the Van Andel Arena on the way home tonight.

Ed Morrissey notes that aside from some Democrat inside baseball, the Silky Pony's endorsement of Obama means precisely nothing.

The following image ran with Willamette Week's endorsement of Barack Obama for President:



There. Are. No. Words.

More creepy obama at NRO.

Clinton lying now about things he said literally yesterday

NOT from The Onion. But could be. If only it was...

Cliff May explains:

Not only do Hamas members oppose a “two-state solution,” they believe that nation-states are un-Islamic. Instead, an Islamic caliphate is to be re-established, an empire that is to expand until the Dar al-Islam, the world ruled by righteous Muslims, consumes the Dar al-Harb, the world in which infidels and apostates currently hold sway. “Rome will be conquered, just like Constantinople was, as was prophesized by our prophet Muhammad,” Hamas member and Palestinian parliamentarian Yunis al-Asal pledged this month on a Hamas television program.

Does Carter sincerely think he can convince Meshaal to reject such ideas and embrace the Carter Center’s kumbaya mission of “waging peace and building hope”? Does he really believe he can change Mashaal’s mind, much less open his heart?

Carter can't go away soon enough as far as I'm concerned.

Wow I hate the red sox.

This was a bad week.



By the way, I'm going to steal the picture in this post and add it to my (small) rotation of Tiger disaster images. I have it on good authority that the man pictured is actually Jason Grilli.

What the heck is going on?

New Kids On The Block to reunite, release new material.

Allahpundit is too good not to quote:

The most rewarding thing about a day like today, when some liberal’s in trouble and anxious to save his own ass, is watching the worst, most predictable, most embarrassing hacks on the other side go face-first into the tank, exactly as you’d expect they would. Sullivan? Check. Matthews? Check. The New York Times College of Cardinals? Checkity check check.

Krauthammer:

The pillars of American liberalism — the Democratic party, the universities, and the mass media — are obsessed with biological markers, most particularly race and gender. They have insisted, moreover, that pedagogy and culture and politics be just as seized with the primacy of these distinctions and with the resulting “privileging” that allegedly haunts every aspect of our social relations.

They have gotten their wish. This primary campaign represents the full flowering of identity politics. It’s not a pretty picture. Geraldine Ferraro says Obama is only where he is because he’s black. Professor Orlando Patterson says the 3 A.M. phone call ad is not about a foreign policy crisis but a subliminal Klan-like appeal to the fear of “black men lurking in the bushes around white society.”

Good grief. The optimist will say that when this is over, we will look back on the Clinton-Obama contest, and its looming ugly endgame, as the low point of identity politics, and the beginning of a turning away. The pessimist will just vote Republican.

Let me just highlight the stuff that makes me cringe:

Phil Sowell, a retired government official, scarcely pauses for breath when asked what Barack Obama would do as President: "He will bring peace to the Middle East and anywhere in the world where there is tragedy."

But Larry Milton, 56, thinks that "he will be more worried about what happens here and less worried about other countries". Carrie Thompson hopes that he will "address global poverty and other issues which Republicans keep overlooking", while Ron Gaynor, 52, a lifelong Republican, says: "He will bring the power of veto and say `no' to a lot of this government spending - we seem to give money to people all around the globe."

Ron Gaynor is not a lifelong Republican. I'd put money on it. And the idea that Obama would reduce government spending, well, let's just call that idea "audacious."

They are all waiting to hear the man himself speak. It is a familiar scene, repeated across America dozens of times in recent weeks. Long queues snake around a sports hall - comprising people of all ages, races and social class - to gather under the Democrat presidential contender's slogan of "change we can believe in". But what, exactly, is this change in which they all believe? The Times conducted more than 50 interviews at a rally in Westerville, Ohio, where many supporters made plain they have contradictory - and burgeoning - expectations of what "President Obama" would do.

Sarah Jaffy, 41, says: "I really like his healthcare plan. And there's another policy - it's my favourite - ooh, I can't remember right now." Erin Henderson, 18, has gone with a gaggle of friends to see Mr Obama and she declares: "We're all really excited about him and we heard he might make it easier to get into college."

Seriously, is it really all that difficult to get into college these days? Perhaps things are different now, but I don't remember it being that difficult to get in. Perhaps she's referring to some Obama plan to help pay for college, but really, what politician doesn't want to help people pay for college?

Sitting in the audience, Alex Dukeman, 17, says that she expects Mr Obama to introduce universal healthcare. But isn't his plan voluntary while Mrs Clinton promises a compulsory mandate? "I just think he is a likable guy and he inspires people," she replies. Zach Adriaenssens, 20, says that Mr Obama is a "unifier" who can negotiate with Republicans "and will sort healthcare".

So Obama is so likeable and such a unifier that he can introduce a health care plan that previously (and frankly still) faces vehement opposition and just magically make it happen on the force of his personality?

Donny Murray, 21, says that Mr Obama "has definitely got a better plan" for tackling global warming. How so? "I'm not sure about the specifics, I just think he'll get more people involved," he says. Freda Graan, 27, a Spanish teacher at Ohio State university, explains: "If you listen to Hillary, she says, `I will do this'. Obama says, `We will do this'. I'm not scared to be idealistic, it's my responsibility as a voter not to be cynical."

Yusuf Abdi, 55, says: "He will change everything - healthcare, no war, education. He can do anything." Karen Clark, a teacher, 58, says that she has switched her support from Clinton because "I want to be on the winning side".

Yusuf Abdi is probably the creepiest of all - Obama will end war! Obama will give everyone healthcare and a good education! HE CAN DO ANYTHING!! Get a grip, man! He's a politician, just like George W. Bush. He wasn't immaculately conceived.

Oh lordy:

To recap: Ron Paul might be re-elected to Congress because Republican voters are voting for Hillary Clinton to increase the chance of John McCain being elected president. Here, have some aspirin.