Well I've just gotten home from the Obama rally, followed by a stop at the movie theater at Sony Center.  I want to diary my experience at the rally and share some eyewitness details for all of you who were not able to attend.  I do apologize that I don't have photos, but by the time I got there it was too dark to use my iPhone camera...

From the BBC, something very interesting in European politics:

The European Commission has warned it may force US diplomats to apply for visas to travel within the European Union from next year

The commission's move is in retaliation for the US' failure to broaden visa-free travel to all EU member states.

Currently, 12 EU member states require a visa when traveling to the US and the commission said "no tangible progress" had been made to change this.

Source

Title updated from comments.

It always seemed to me that Clinton and Obama had more in common than not.  They were both skillful politicians running for President from non-conventional backgrounds; they had many of the same policy positions; they had the ability to inspire their followers and to bring new voters into politics and into the Democratic Party; they both stood to make history with their elections and would probably shift America towards being a more tolerant, progressive nation.  

Hillary Clinton's loss can in part be attributed to an assault from both sides of the political spectrum.  Certainly, her rejection by the progressive base of the party played significantly to her loss in the election.

Will history repeat itself with Barack Obama?   Thoughts on this after the fold.

I have wanted to diary this for a couple days, and have just found the time.  Since I have not seen it on the site anywhere else, I thought it would be fun to share.

James Dobson and John McCain are getting backing for their anti-marriage stance from 9-11 Mastermind Khalid Shaikh Mohammed.  From the LA Times

The California ruling did draw sharp criticism from one person: confessed Sept. 11 mastermind Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, who used his June 5 arraignment to show that news of California's same-sex marriages had reached the Guantanamo Bay detention facility.

"Evil laws are not the laws of God," Mohammed told the U.S. military and civilian officials at his trial, citing "laws allowing same-sex marriages" as an example.

A Presidential Campaign  is a large scale, billion dollar nationwide marketing campaign presenting competing products.  Obama is winning because of his successful approach to brand-building, and the advantage that he has been able to create his brand without having to work against previous existing negative associations.  This diary is my analysis of the marketing strategies employed by Obama, Clinton, and McCain and the strengths and weaknesses of their respective brands.

I am devoting this, my first Diary on Daily Kos, to talk about something that has been concerning me in the Health Care debate.  Specifically, that we are being sold the idea of Universal Health Care, when what we are getting is actually Universal Health Insurance, and that there is a huge difference between the two.  

Follow the fold for more.