Governor Mike Huckabee seems at first glance like the ideal '08 GOP candidate. I mean, the party's base has been complaining for months that the frontrunners don't embody their values -- Giuliani has been married three times and is pro-choice; Romney has only recently become pro-life, and he's a mormon (gasp!). Well here's another Arkansas governor from a place called Hope, but this one is an evangelical Christian, and a minister to boot. He's always been pro-life, he's supported the invasion and occupation of Iraq every step of the way, he doesn't believe in Evolution and all that pesky science-y stuff. Yep, he believes the Bible is the literal word of God, from the talking snake to the pillar of salt to the belly of the whale to "beam-me-up-Jesus." What's not to like? Is he not whacky enough for the Dobson and Haggard crowd? He was officially endorsed by Chuck Norris!

Oh, wait, I see. Apparently he's into stuff like expanding healthcare for poor kids. He talks about. . . America being a compassionate nation? That stinks of liberalism! Who does he think he is, RFK?

If you like, allow expert Con operative Bob "The Prince of Darkness" Novak to elighten you about why Huckabee just isn't conservative enough.

Or, skipt it, and read up on Barack Obama instead. :)

-jw

Wow. . . I'm starting to get the feeling that there are more brains at work these days than there were four years ago.

The following TV spots were created by the Center for American Progress (you know, one of those extreme left fringe smear groups that promotes environmental protection and healthcare). I think they're pretty brilliant in their truth and simplicity. Why has it been so hard for the left to get with the message all these years?

You can go to MoveOn and vote for your favorite -- the plan is to get at least one of them on the national airwaves this holiday season.












BTW. . . HAPPY THANKSGIVING EVERYONE!

-jw

The street not the planet, but still strange to find out that there is an elephant standing in the street around the corner from your house.



It turned out that there was a parade that day in Little Ethiopia. The parade officially started just north of Pico but all of the participants were staged just south of Pico, including the elephant.




Thanks to Gregg and Abbey for spotting this on their way out to lunch last sunday and for calling and letting me know!



-liz2

He was a populist who combined fierce progressive values with forceful rhetoric and seemingly boundless energy. He fearlessly stood up to Big Oil and Big Pharma on behalf of working people. He campaigned relentlessly for the environment, for health care reform, for education, the needs of children etc. He was an unapologetic liberal. (And yes, that last sentence is redundant.)

You know how if you call or write your senator of member of congress, you occasionally might get back a form letter a month or so later? Thank you for contacting me blah blah blah. And quite often the form letter has nothing to do with the issue that you attempted to voice an opinion on? It was not uncommon, during his time in office, for some Minnesotans to get a personal phone call from Wellstone himself.

Someone on Youtube commented that his spirit "lives on in all democracts." Nice sentiment. But clearly not true. If the late Senator Wellstone were typical of our national leaders rather than an outstanding exception to the rule, we would be living in a very different country.

This is a newer video someone put together last week.