The religious right don't see the issues of economy, health care, education (other than vouchers for parochial schools), energy independents, tax cuts for the middle class, and jobs. All they care about is abortion, prayer, creationism, moose hunting and the massive threat of gay marriage. Palin can actually say that she lied about the bridge support, she would be better off with the independents, and the hard right would still be in love (or is that "in like"…don't want to appear too cozy) with her.

Interestingly enough today McCain and Palin (M&P) stated they were blaming the mortgage crisis on the negative effects of Freddie and Fannie lobbyists. Well guess what? Rick Davis, McCains campaign manager is a former lobbyist to F & F. That is too rich! Then Palin continues to spout she was against the bridge to nowhere, yet she is on record in 2006 supporting the bridge. She further states she told Congress "no thanks" but a look into the record shows that Congress defunded/cancelled the project prior to her "condemnation" of it. And she kept the funds for Alaska to spend on other pork projects. Alaska is the highest per capita state in the US for earmark spending. And people believe her when she spouts these outright lies about her record and that she is a reformer. Talk about a celebrity. 82% of Repubs approve of her yet she has not been vetted in the press or by debate at all. That is celebrity.

because everyone uses a speech writer, but it seems the harder McCain tries to distance himself from Bush, the closer he gets. What seems a little strange, however, is that this woman who spoke at the convention has practically disappeared from view. The hogwash of trying to protect her until the media shows more respect is the worst excuse for isolation I have ever heard. If she is going to be our VP, and very potentially our President, could we at least let her talk to the press. We need to know who we are voting for. We already have a President who people want to have a beer with, and now it looks as if we a working on one who we would like to have coffee with (or hunt moose). Could we try for one that could be, like, uh…a President?

New slogan for the Obama-ites. "You can too."

Or was Barry's road to success too difficult for your average kid?

Palin wrote her speech with Matthew Scully, a former Bush speechwriter. She certainly did not write it on her own, but one certainly can't fault her for that, as it is common practice not to write your own speeches.

Obama chose a person with a lot of credentials and one who was critical of him. That shows leadership. One who is willing to take on a person who will not be a suck-up, who will act as an advisor, who will tell him/her if he thinks a decision may be wrong. McCain's choice shows a pandering for votes and nothing else. If he can truly say Palin can run the office of POTUS from day one as he said his pick would be then he is lying. If Obama's pick had Palin's qualifications he would be in the midst of a grilling and no one can say anything different.

Mary, I see your point. My sentence structure was rather poor, as I was actually refering to the part about Obama's skills and experience.

PD, Obama chosing Biden as his running tells me 2 things about the man. First he knows he does not have enough experience for the #1 slot and needs lots of help. 2nd the Biden choice tells me Obama isn't terribly smart. I know Joe Biden and that choice was an Obama killer to me as I wouldn't vote for Biden for dog catcher.

Len, I do believe the majority of Palin's spech was written by her and then polished by her speechwriter as evidenced by her being unnfazed when the teleprompter got out of sync with her,

No, but I would have been more impressed if it had been written by Palin, or Palin's speech writer.

Gabrielle, Obama grew up without a father, worked hard in school, graduated from Columbia and Harvard (was recognized for his legal acumen and as such became President of Harvard Review), turned down a high paying career to develop partnerships to deal wih poverty, taught Constitutional law for twelve years, and ran for office.

And did all of this without the government handouts that he now proposes. How's that for 'bootstrap individulaism'?

Gabrielle, Obama grew up without a father, worked hard in school, graduated from Columbia and Harvard (was recognized for his legal acumen and as such became President of Harvard Review), turned down a high paying career to develop partnerships to deal wih poverty, taught Constitutional law for twelve years, and ran for office. He is the self made person you describe. Mary, please research factcheck.org, Annenberg Project, taxpolicycenter.org, CNN/Money, etc and look at how McCains and Obamas tax plans compare. You will be quite surprised at the real situation. And come back with some hard facts on just what socialist govt Obama wants to institute. So far this all sounds just like the talking points from the usual Dem hating bloviators.

The America that can understand mathematics, and the America that belongs to the two major parties.

Neither the Republicans nor the Democrats appear to have a grasp on the economic problems we face over the next 20 years. Unfortunately, the great majority of Americans either don't understand the numbers either or simply refuse to face the unpleasant realities and keep electing one or the other.

If we want to avoid the path so many other countries have followed, we have some hard changes to face. We must abandon taxation of income in favor of consumption, government must be cut at least in half, and all subsidies must end so the market can work.

Sadly, it seems we will have to wait for our house of cards to collapse before the nation will face the truth.

I agree with your view of America and where we need to head, but Margie said that Obama reflects the America *she* loves and you told her he does not. Margie may very well love an America with higher taxes and more social programs, and that is her right. Many of our fellow countrymen and women are voting for that platform. Not to split hairs, but we can only define which America *we* love, not the one that someone else loves. They get to choose and vote their conscience, too. Cheers, MGM

"""Obama articulates a vision of the America I love and has the skills and judgment to inspire us to make it a reality."""

No, he doesn't, as has been fully laid out in the comments here. His vision of America is one of everyone being beholden to the whims of the government. That is NOT the America I love.

The America I love is made up of individuals who on their own, or collectively, work to better themselves and help their neighbors without the interference of the government.

I did not claim that *only* conservative Christians flood into storm-damaged areas to help, but just that they do that in numbers out of proportion to their numbers in the general population. Of course, there are good-hearted people of every belief. I was speaking of trends and percentages. And remember, if it was not clear, my comments were in reponse to someone that said the terms "community" and "diversity" only reflect the liberal side of politics. That we conservatives are socially isolated and fearful. So my point was . . . that is not at all the case in most churches that I know (probably in most synagogues and mosques here, too). Cheers, MGM

"I know Ira....I am a typical tax and spend Dem with no morals and socialist ideals.... "

Due to primary voting in NC I am a registered Dem. I side w/ the democratic party most of the time. I am a fiscal conservative and I pay attention reasonably well. Everything you have in all of your psots is simply false. You are quoting soundbites. This idea that "visions" are enoug hto change the world are silly. I am not cut from the same cloth as you so I choose not to insult you, but I can in all honesty say I will never align myself w/ someone who does not understand the subject they discuss beyond the first paragraph of a story produced by the media. You simply don't know what you are talking about. At least P.D. act's like he pretending to be nuetral to the facts.

maybe you'd be happier if Palin's speech had been written by Obama's speech writer?

You're talking about the Swedish government, which is practically socialist itself (check what percentage of a person's pay goes out in taxes there). I am talking about individuals, or groups that individuals choose to join (churches, mosques, etc.) working together to help the poor, downtrodden, homeless, displaced, etc. We can't know for sure that the Swedes are any kinder at heart than we are, just that their government takes their tax money and uses it efficiently to help the poor in their country and elsewhere. And that is great that they have taken lots of displaced Iraqis, but, again, that is government policy, not individuals adopting a displaced Iraqi and taking him home. Cheers, MGM

"rationality and liberalism"
That is an oxymoran!

Conservative Christians do not own the patent on good works. Internationally, Sweden, by all measures a secular nation, has one of the highest expenditure per capita and best quality (aid going directly to the distressed without agenda other than assistance)relief records in the world. They have also taken in many more Iraqi refugees than we have, much to the emabarrassment of the US. And this is a country of about 9 million or so. You are right, perhaps, that atheists, by definition and belief, are non-conformers; after all they are in a distinct minority, can't win elections, scorned, villified and persecuted...usually by Christians, maybe even charitable Christians.
On the subject of villification, Palin's speech, written by Bush's writer, was a series of one liner insults and attacks to bolster her pit bull with lipstick persona...not very charitable or Christian, I might add.

Mary, once again your obsession with conservative religion causes you to project on the larger society. You are right that Churches, Synagogues, and Mosques are among the most community minded and organized when it comes to outreach but they are certainly not alone in this. Secular organizations and group including many agnostics and atheists are among the most charitable and active citizens. Religious conservatives have no monopoly on morality, social activism or outreach. In our own area, the NEST homeless sheltering by churches was started by the Unitarian Church of Norfolk -- a bastion or rationality and liberalism. I also know of many non-religious, left wing (and anarchist) people who have gone repeatedly to New Orleans to help rebuild and provide support. Our larger national society is indeed divers and must be all inclusive.

with all due respect, and you know I respect you on these boards above most others, you are called sheeple because when a man in a pulpit tells some that one way of life is destined to eternal damnation and another is anointed by god, well it is taken by those who follow doctrine to the extreme. While I am aware that many liberals (of which I am) are just as extreme (which, believe it or not I am NOT), there is no middle ground in this country any longer.
That middle ground disappeared when christianity hijacked our political process. I am all for organized religion, and the great things that come from it. However, I find it apalling that it is even considered when developing the laws in a country where its people can exercise freedom of AND from religion. Put it this way, I would love the GOP except for all of that evangelical manipulation.

Palin as mayor of her little town approved the doubling of its expenditures to pay a lobbyist to get federal earmarks-the ones McCain and Palin are against. She got $27 million in 2004 from the Feds and that equates to almost $4,000 per citizen when at that time the per capita expense for all earmarks was under $50 nationwide. Talk about a pork lover. She sided with the king of pork Stevens and his bridge to nowhere until about the time he came under scrutiny and so did the project-then she supposedly saw the light of reform. Uh yea. She is a politician no better than any other, she is just wrapped in a new package to make people think she is different.

Two things jump out at me when you group diversity and community with liberalism.
First, conservative churches (and they are not all conservative, I understand) are some of the first disaster relief people into every storm-tossed area because they are such well-organized, tightly-knit communities. In fact, liberals sometimes call us "sheeple" because all a pastor has to say is that people in New Orleans need us to drive a truckload of relief items down and you've got the money, truck, and people, all donated, by the end of the service. In my experience, the atheists I've known have been the non-conformist non-joiners who are less likely to be part of any community of people.
Secondly, there is nowhere more diverse than the U.S. military (though our church is pretty diverse) and that is more-than-average conservative, too. Cheers, MGM

Well, there's one America represented in this letter and another in the responses thus far. Some of us respond to rationality, reason, diversity, community, the historic struggle for social progress and the advancement of human civilization. Others fear those things and cling to traditions, myths of bootstrap individualism, fundamentalism, and fear-driven xenophobia and nationalism. As one of our finest leaders once said, "We have nothing to fear, but fear itself."

Obamas vision of reducing taxes for the middle class while holding the upper 10% accountable for their share is appealing, you know that thing Bush said he would do but never did.
Obamas vision of helping our underfunded schools (those schools Bush, Drake, and the other GOP Neocons voted against funding increases for) so that No Child Left Behind will actually not leave any children behind (not just the rich white ones).
Then there is this war McCain says we can afford to be in for another 100 years (what does he care he will be relaxing in his 7 or 8 .....he's still not sure....houses he may or may not own).
I know Ira....I am a typical tax and spend Dem with no morals and socialist ideals.... McCain is good man who was the most photographed POW in history (even more than Jane Fonda if all of those pics from the convention say anything) blah blah blah. Palin is good woman who can tell the rest of America

you are so funny when you babble! The slogan should not be "Yes we Can!" it should be "Yes we will!"

I find it funny, the more McCain tries to look like his own man, the more he looks like Bush.

And there are the citizens who believe the strength of America is in her free roots, as in grassroots.

A perfect description of Sarah Palin, who entered politics to make positive change rather than just complain about the status quo. An ordinary woman doing extraordinary things.

BTW, speechwriters put the speakers' ideas into words. If you choose to ignore insprirational words because they were written by someone else, you'll have nothing on which to judge Barack Obama.

Maybe someone will come up with a compelling argument against Sarah Palin, but I haven't read one yet.

"Obama articulates a vision of the America I love and has the skills and judgment to inspire us to make it a reality."

If this letter had been presented in a writing workshop our teacher would have said, "Don't tell us he is great, show us he is great w/ you words and let us see it.

This is the standard Obama supporter rhetoric. They tell us how great he is but can never show us. They simply make false accusations and rabid attacks on the opposition.

Boo on you.