Soleded O'Brien in an unprecedented investigation -- CNN: Black in America

According to a Reuters report, the former "President" of the breakaway Bosnian Serb entity known as Republika Srpska, Radovan Karadžić, has been arrested by Serbian authorities. Along with Bosnian Serb commander, Gen. Ratko Mladić, Karadžić was wanted by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) in The Hague. Indictments were issued over a decade ago for war crimes committed during the conflict in Bosnia between 1992 and 1996.

"I don't know enough about it to give you an informed answer."

Thank you all for coming. And now -- Senator McCain will take some questions:

As if it wasn't obvious enough that Iran is trying to intimidate its neighbors, Israel and the U.S., it seems they've gone too far, even for the media. Yesterdays' news carried the statements that, according to our intelligence, the Iranian leadership has overstated the effectiveness of their nuclear enrichment program. Today, however, the Iranian leadership's scare-tactics have taken a seriously comic turn.

Barack Obama is the Democratic candidate for President. Wes Clark doesn't represent the campaign, and he isn't running for anything, despite being anointed by his devout circle of believers in the race for national savior.

The significance of this observation is this: Obama doesn't want to be talking about Wes Clark -- Obama wants to be talking about what changes he will bring and what good he will do for the country, and how John McCain is just more of the same. Like any sensible candidate, he has distanced himself from an impolitic remark made by a "surrogate" that isn't even associated with the campaign.

Looking at the 'front page' of the Washington Post website, I was struck by the cognitive dissonance that was revealed by the happy juxtaposition of two tangentially related stories -- one placed directly above the other. I wonder whether John McCain would see the irony?

Go below "the fold" to see what I mean (please forgive the cut-and-paste job...I don't know how to do the whole image capture thing):

Today's news, via an article in the New York Times, brings the most encouraging news in a long time. Honda is going forward with production of fuel-cell powered cars. No internal combustion. Zero emissions of global-warming gases or other pollution.

Many Kossacks have called for Markos to take down this story about McCain's yellowed teeth. I'm heartened to see that there are two diaries on the rec list condemning this diary. Their appearance on the rec list suggests that many Kossacks feel that this story was a "Gross" mistake.

Most comments have called for Markos to pull the story from the site. While that's not a bad idea, and is something that should happen, it's not enough. He should publish a formal retraction --  a real, sincere apology.

Sixteen months ago, I witnessed the power of Barack Obama to captivate a willing audience. He spoke to the DNC at the 2007 Winter meeting -- spoke to a thunderous ovation. He spoke of a vision for a new type of politics that reached across the aisle to unite Democrats and Republicans. He spoke of change. Heck, he spoke a lot about change.

However, except for a few comments about education, especially making higher education affordable, he wasn't too clear about what kind of change he meant. I was left with a little empty feeling -- wanting to feel the unabashed adoration his most fervent supporters felt -- but I didn't get a sense for what Barack Obama would actually try to accomplish substantively, as President. I stayed in Edwards' camp -- but knowing that was a doomed effort, I continued to hope for Obama's victory. When it was my turn to vote, I enthusiastically voted for Obama. I sensed there was something special about the moment -- Americans voting in large numbers and with such fervor, for a black man. This was truly a hopeful, inspiring development, yet I still felt an small empty space, because too many of the blanks still needed to be filled in.

After months of closed-door discussions and public silence, Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne has made it official: Polar Bears are actually endangered. No doubt, the right wing and global warming deniers are being thrown into spasmodic fits, but this represents the political success of an orchestrated pressure campaign from environmental and wildlife groups.

Of course, anyone who has been paying attention tothie arguments during this campaign, especially on this site, knows that Barack Obama's supporters have been adamant that the superdelegates should not use their position to thwart the popular will. There has been volumes written about the Clinton campaign's efforts to get superdelegates to support her, despite the heavy early results in favor of Obama. Many have threatened to leave the party, or to simply stay home on Election Day, should the superdelegates vote to deny the nomination to the candidate chosen by the American people.

Most clearly, this argument has coalesced around the idea that superdelegates should vote as their states have voted, or their congressional districts. Since most supers are elected officials, this line of reasoning seems respectful of the electoral will expressed by their constituents -- the ones they represent. However, with Clinton's huge rout in W.Va., one W.Va superdelegate has looked at the race, and expressed his disdain for the popular will.

Many of you might not be aware of my personal political history. I was volunteer on Gary Hart's 1984 Presidential campaign. When he dropped out of the 1988 race, the first time, I discovered the upstart candidacy of Michigan congressman Jack Tanner. Though Rep. Tanner was unable to break through against Democratic heavyweights like Michael Dukakis and Jesse Jackson, Tanner made a big impression on me and a lot of other Democrats, with his intelligence and integrity. Most of all, we admired his independence and his audacity...and we longed for progressive politics. The excitement of his candidacy was captured in the ground-breaking insider's look provided us by filmmaker Robert Altman, in Tanner '88.

As the Democratic race this year has become increasingly nasty and divisive, I have come to the conclusion that the Party needs Jack Tanner more than ever. That's why I'm proposing the formation of a Draft Tanner movement. I know a lot of you don't know Jack. America never really got to know Jack Tanner. For those of you who really don't know Jack, I'd like to introduce you to Jack Tanner.

There are a few rules for getting noticed here lately. While previous diaries have endeavored to sum up what it takes to get noticed and get love on DKos -- and with greater humor -- I think the subject needs to be revisited. There may be people who have not figured out how to get the internet love and approval they desperately covet. So, here goes:

I wish we would stop talking about Rev. Wright because he is not Barack Obama. The actual Presidential candidate, Obama, has already said that Wright doesn't speak for him and that he doesn't agree with everything the Reverend has said. Some of it actually bothers and offends him. Yet, Kossacks feel the impulse to continue mounting a defense of Rev. Wright.

Stop doing that. Stop doing it because Rev. Wright shouldn't matter, and you just keep the controversy alive by taking it on the merits. That's a pointless argument to be having now, and it certainly won't help Obama. Stop defending Wright because what he has said doesn't matter.

However, you should also stop defending Wright because some of it really is indefensible. I don't write this because it's important. I write this because we need to move on. I had tabled this diary for a few weeks, but since Wright is back, perhaps it's time I published it. Please don't dismiss me as a 'concern troll'. Hear me out on this one.

I'm certainly not the first to make this point, and there are diaries that might make the point more thoroughly than I, but I wanted to add my voice to the chorus of boos for Hillary Clinton. Even though I supported John Edwards until his withdrawal, and even though I voted for Barack Obama, I've tried to defend Clinton over the last months from attacks that I did not feel were warranted or did not bear a fair resemblance to truth. I'm through defending her, because she's crossed a line, indefensibly.

{I apologize for earlier diary title -- I meant levity -- there was no offense intended}

Last month, plf515, posted a Fitness Monday diary on weight training -- Men, women and muscles. It was a good introduction to the topic. I want to echo much of what was written there, but I wanted to expand on that diary, too. Last month's diary lacked any real discussion of how to structure a routine, so that will be my focus here.

According to a just published internet survey, Hillary Clinton is not a popular figure on the leading progressive blogsite, the Daily Kos.

You may be dreading yet another DKos piece on the AP's scurrilous Obama flag lapel pin story, but I'd like to offer my suggestion as to how Obama can use this to his advantage. There's a debate later tonight, and it seems to me that Tim Russert, being who he is, could scarcely resist the temptation to ask Obama about this story. While Obama has given a perfectly fine, intelligent response, I think he can do more with it.