Be afraid

We all know what the deal is. When it comes to presidential politics, you either are or you aren't. And Barack Obama aren't. If you can't grasp the simple math of that statement, you don't know much about elections in this country. It's not about the war, or the economy, or the faltering Republican brand, or any of that: This is about hate and fear, and a dark instinct in our blood going all the way back to Salem, and whether or not a desperately ambitious ex-heretic named John McCain can whip up a big enough mob in time to drown the latest witch.

The boss

Many of the musicians on Obama's iPod, such as Bruce Springsteen, are supporting his White House bid.

Earlier this month, Dylan said he believed Obama was redefining politics in the US and could bring change to a nation in upheaval.

"I've got to say, having both Dylan and Bruce Springsteen say kind words about you is pretty remarkable," Obama said. "Those guys are icons."

Obama said he had not met Springsteen but that the two had talked over the phone.

"Not only do I love Bruce's music, I just love him as a person," Obama said. "He is a guy who has never lost track of his roots, who knows who he is, who has never put on a front."

He added that, when speaking to the singer, he addressed him by his moniker the Boss. "You've got to," Obama said.

If I had a boat

If I were an economist and owned a boat, I think I'd have to name it "Sunk Costs".

As a web developer I'm inclined to use "Float:Left;" though it might behoove me, amongst the boating set, to call it "Float:Port;".

Perspective

What Digby said.

Bill Clinton is in the pantheon of popular ex-presidents who continues to do important work on global initiatives. Hillary Clinton is a Senator and historic breakthrough presidential candidate who won more primary votes than any candidate in history aside from Barack Obama. Al Gore is a global leader and Nobel prize winner. On the other side of that epic battle, Newt Gingrich is a Fox News commentator, writing reviews of mystery thrillers on Amazon. Tom Delay is a private citizen facing indictment. Half of the social conservatives who unctuously criticized Clinton's behavior have been run out of town on morals charges.

Implausible, unworkable, and moreover, inefficient

On the Implausibility of the Death Star's Trash Compactor

I just cannot fathom how an organization as ruthless and efficiently-run as the Empire would have signed off on such a dangerous, unsanitary, and shoddy garbage-disposal system as the one depicted in the movie.

Iconography