The absence of Morning Joe brings the presence of morning bliss?  Or, a call to feminists to help me understand why Mika drives me nuts.

What should we expect from MSNBC? We flocked to them when no one else would give us a fair hearing. We flocked to them not because their general tone was necessarily any different but because of Keith Olbermann and let's face it, where else could we go if you were a junkie like me. Fox was unbearable and unwatchable. CNN was in the midst of destroying their reputation of being "professional" as opposed to partisan hacks. So we went to MSNBC and once again we have been burned.

I just watched Obama foreign policy advisor Susan Rice hammer McCain on MSNBC’s Morning Joe. Yesterday, of course, McCain gaffed himself on the Today Show, saying "it’s not that important" when troops can come home from Iraq.  Rice related the blunder to McCain’s pattern of confused mistakes on Iraq and endorsed Wes Clark’s statement yesterday that McCain is, contrary to his reputation, "untested and untried" on national security.

I felt like a Red Sox fan must have felt in 2004. For years, I’ve watched democratic operatives get drubbed on these shows. Here was a strong performance that  cut against the grain of conventional wisdom in a strategic, successful way. Scarborough ate it up and defended Rice when his fembot sidekick wondered if the attack was consistent with Obama’s "new politics" and nice guy image.

Our lives are filled with enough stress. Even our news shows are filled with hostility rather than civility. I understand that there are some who enjoy the electrifying atmosphere of heated debate, but do all shows have to be like so confrontational?

I chanced to watch an episode of the PBS newsmagazine NOW which is hosted by David Brancaccio. What an eye-opener. This particular episode focused on what was happening in the various presidential campaign races. It featured Willie Brown, a Democratic former mayor of San Francisco, and Daniel Schnur, a Republican political strategist who worked for John McCain in the 2000 presidential campaign against George Bush.

The program was intriguing, and totally opposite to what is often presented on cable news programs. It was calm, insightful, thought-provoking, humorous, and informative. It allowed the viewers to make up their minds, rather than having viewpoints rammed down our throats.

In which a few of the talking heads we can't get out of our heads, or off our televisions, are reviewed

In talking about the recent actions at the polygamist compound in Texas where hundreds of children were rescued from sex slavery, MSNBC's Joe Scarborough said boo.  It's time to call out Joe and others with this warped viewpoint.

One of the biggest responsibilities we as a people have is to protect our children.  When children are being forced to have sex with older men, sometimes men they are related to, and sometimes being impregnated by those same men, good hearted people need to rise up and stop that.

The Joe Scarboroughs and Michael Savages of the world are so paranoid that the government is trying to stop people's religious freedoms that they will give some people a pass when they abuse children.  This has nothing to do with religion.  This is about basic human rights.  Hopefully those who don't realize that yet will see the light.  The sooner the better.    

http://www.factcheck.org/...

I understand that this is a left-wing site but as responsible citizens we need to be vigilant against phony political talking points from all sides of the political spectrum.

Whether you want to hear it or not the DNC, Obama & Hillary etc. have been engaging in a deliberate propaganda campaign against Senator John McCain on the issue of Iraq. They are choosing to distort his comment about a 100 year presence in the region into an endorsement of unending war.

But hey - don't take my word for it. Listen to FactCheck.org and their analysis:

Well, we've been treated all week to the preview trailers for the Fall campaign.  Scarborough and Buchanan have offered some fairly transparent insights into the way their War Room will attempt to destroy Barack Obama and destroy this dangerous assault on the Establishment.  I suppose we should give them credit for their uncharacteristic candor and transparency.

But here is the thought I had as I listened to Buchanan's predictions about how Obama will be "ghetto-ized" by 527s from here to eternity: Where are our clever and ruthless rebutters?  And how should they counter?

I've got some ideas. They are not nice and not noble, but they might be effective.

I wanted to share my quick Letter to MSNBC about comments Joe Scarborough made this morning. These are not special or meaningful words but I felt I had to say them. Feel free to tell me where I messed up.
Enjoy!

McCain's Campaign Manager essentially says the brouhaha over Obama's Pastor is no big deal.

I know that I am not the first Kossack to seek office, and more importantly, I know I will not be the last.

But I wanted to reach out to you all, my colleagues, and thank you for helping to cultivate my sense of public service and interest in our political process.

With any luck, but mostly a lot of hard work, I'll be able to represent my home town in Augusta, Maine, as a member of the Legislature.  So I wanted to thank you all, for helping to bring me to this point.