Congratulations to the six-peat defending NFL Champion Washington Redskins.

Fans of the fabled football juggernaut have demanded that the National Football League award the championship to Washington due to the fact that they led the league in attendance this past season as they have every year since 2002.

As some of you may know from my previous posts, I am the father of a son who suffers from autism. One of the resources that have helped us out a great deal is Unlocking Autism. It was there that I learned about this 14 year olds project and I would like to reprint here the email I sent to my family and friends. I know this is a departure from my usual political posts and I know that this is just one boys dream but I hope you will indulge this diary.

Thanks,

LCD

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Subject: What do I do with my can tabs???

Hello,

I know that this is a problem we all confront every day ;-) (btw, this really is Jerry and not a spam/redirect, call me if you don't believe me).

If you, like me, produce a number of empty cans you can put the tabs to good use (soda or beer, its all good).

...for Clinton to capture the nomination she needs to completely abandon her positive campaign and continue to hammer away at Obama.

I have a theory thought I would like to submit to this august audience.

Barack Obama has managed to out strategize the Clinton team at it's own strength, political jiu jitsu.

The strength of the Clinton political machine has always been in counter offense, they react better than they attack. Allow me to enumerate several of the Clinton Machine successes:

Just a quick poll question for the dKos audience.

I was wondering if Al Gore has left a legacy that has surpassed that left by Bill Clinton.

I don't feel the need to enumerate the successes and failures in their respective prodigious résumés (especially in such an learned demographic such as this) so I will simply pose the question.

Which man will be judged by history as having a greater impact on humanity?

Please comment with any specifics.

[Update]:

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You're unbelievable Joe, you patronized this guy.

Chris Matthews (almost) never makes me do anything but roll my eyes and groan when he opines but he just knocked one completely out of the park.

Matthews was on Morning Joe shortly after a segment with Rep. Patrick Murphy had appeared. Joe Scarborough had told Murphy that (because of his Iraq service) he was exactly what the Democratic party needs (inferring that he is the exception).

Scarborough was discussing Murphy with Matthews as his segment started and said "He's what the Democrats have needed for so long, it's been so easy to beat up Democrats as sort of weak on defense" and "This guys the real deal" when Matthews cut in with "So let me get this right, If you're a Democrat you have to have about four or five battle ribbons to be OK but if you're a republican you can be Dick Cheney with four or five deferments. That's the rule." and "Democrat's start about four notches down from patriotism and have to work their way up."

...An actual horse race. One of the most famous horse races in history, the 99th running of the Kentucky Derby, May 5, 1973 won by all time great Secretariat in the first leg of his becoming the first triple crown winner in 25 years.

In winning the Derby, Secretariat became the first horse to cover the race distance of one and a quarter miles in under two minutes (1 minute 59 2/5 seconds), a record which still stands to this day.

No other horse would break the two minute barrier at Churchill Downs for another 2/5 of a second.

More below

Washington D.C.
Wednesday, February 20, 2008

After suffering an unbroken (and for the last few weeks unacknowledged) string of ten straight state primary and caucus losses the Hillary Clinton for President campaign announced that they have ended the losing streak with a resounding victory in the State of Denial.

A spokesman for the Clinton campaign claimed "Although Denial currently has no recognized convention delegates we have a plan in place to create some and fight to get them seated, we do not know at this time how many delegates  we, I mean they, will receive".

When asked for a response to the Clinton plan to add and seat Denial's delegates at the convention an unnamed source in the Obama campaign replied "No se pueden! (NO THEY CAN'T)!".

Senator Clinton is currently flying to Denial to celebrate her 'victory'.

It is amazing to me to see the sordid depths to which both the rabid right and the Clinton cabal will sink in throwing anything and everything at Barack Obama in hopes that something/anything will stick.

Here are just two current examples:

From the wingnut side on the WaPo web site, Ramesh Ponnuru acts as concern troll.

"I am very skeptical of the idea that Obama's candidacy will promote racial healing."

this is followed by a series of hypothetical 'what ifs' in an attempt to infer that Obama may set back the plight of African Americans by decades. Just sad...

   "Senator Obama has some questions to answer about his dealings with one of his largest contributors, Exelon, a big nuclear power company. Apparently he cut some deals behind closed doors to protect them from full disclosure in the nuclear industry."
   --Hillary Clinton, ABC-Politico Forum, Feb. 11, 2008.

This is a very serious charge.

The WashingtonPost.com's Fact Checker blog looked into this charge and found it lacking substance.

MSNBC is reporting that Rep. Tom Lantos, the only holocaust survivor to serve in congress and also the chairman of the United States House Committee on Foreign Affairs, has passed away.

He had previously announced that he would not seek reelection this November after being diagnosed with Cancer.

"It is only in the United States that a penniless survivor of the Holocaust and a fighter in the anti-Nazi underground could have received an education, raised a family, and had the privilege of serving the last three decades of his life as a Member of Congress," he said. "I will never be able to express fully my profoundly felt gratitude to this great country." - Tom Lantos

Rest in Peace...

Initial disclosure, I support Barack Obama. However, I am looking for all viewpoints on this question.

After Stupor Tuesday this race is as tight as it can be, the difference to this point is largely 'pledged' super delegates (Democratic office holders, party officers, VIP's such as former Presidents, etc.). Currently, Hillary Clinton has a lead in these super delegates who have pledged to one of the candidates of around 85 however, these pledges are not enforceable and the delegates can change ther minds/votes.

The layout of states to be decided between now Ohio and Texas would appear to favor Barack Obama as examined in this excellent diary by teacherKen. Either candidate may have opened up a significant lead in voter determined delegates by the convention in Denver but still not have enough to clinch the nomination with the super delegates.

More below:

Edwards campaign advisor 'Mudcat' Saunders was just on MSNBC with Norah O'Donnell to discuss Edwards suspending his campaign (approx. 12:45 est).

When asked about who he thought Edwards would endorsed he minced no words.

I can't speak for John. I can say this, that being a southerner, being an American whose been completely devastated by the trade policies of the Clinton's, I'm gonna do everything in my power to make sure that he DOES NOT endorse Hillary Clinton!

Kurt Andersen has a piece in New York Magazine titled "Who's Your Daddy Now?" that looks into the current shift in how the two major parties are defined in the zeitgeist. I thought that many Kossacks would find this essay interesting as he delves into the dynamics that are changing the publics views of the two parties and especially the impact that the Iraq debacle is having on it.

The piece begins with an overview of the last forty years of presidential election politics.

The GOP’s remarkable success at presidential politics the past 40 years has been a function of its "daddy party" image—happy to exercise military power abroad, unaccommodating of misbehavior and hard-luck stories at home, penny-pinching, can-do— in contrast to the Democrats’ "mommy party" M.O. of naïveté, mollycoddling, and profligacy. And the Republicans’ only shot at electing a president next year really does depend on pushing that old trope.

WaPo columnist Dana Milbank has the story today of what it looks like when a dubya enabler ventures into the reality based world...

'For a Man in the Middle on Iraq, Church Provides No Sanctuary' tells the tale of when Congressman Tom Davis appeared at the Accotink Unitarian Universalist Church to meet with constituents and other citizens.

Click this link to see the quintessential picture of a dubya enabler in the real world. (I would have posted it but I do not know the rules governing the use of copyrighted images).

I recommend the article as I imagine that the reception he received is representative of that which repugs are finding all over our great country.

This should whet your appetite:

The exodus continues, 'White House budget director Rob Portman is resigning and will be replaced by former Iowa Rep. Jim Nussle' - According to the TERENCE HUNT of The Associated Press on the WaPo web site.

Nussle has been an adviser in Iowa for Giuliani's campaign (so I guess both he and Portman are BOTH abandoning a sinking ship).

Portman held the Congressional seat in Cincinnati that brought us 'Mean' Jean Schmidt when he resigned.

Look for the White House to use this to try to paint the dems as the runaway spenders.

The last one out will most likely keep the lights on to continue burning fossil fuels...

Portman said the president "is in a good position" to contest the Democratic-controlled Congress over spending if necessary. The White House has issued some veto threats against spending bills in recent days, and more are coming, the budget director said.

One of the victims of Mondays tragic massacre, Reema Samaha, was my goddaughter's best friend since preschool. I only knew her and her sister as the little girls (now women) who were always running around with Monica and her sisters.

Reema and her friends loved to dance and act. Reema won a Critics Choice Award (a Cappie) for her dancing in the Westfield High School production of Fiddler on the Roof.

If you would like to see Reema and gang acting silly (and see what a beautiful person she was) please watch this video (warning, the content is inanely silly but it will shine some light on Reema's personality), Reema is wearing the red shirt in the video:

http://youtube.com/...

There is also video of her last dance (that hurts to write) here:

http://kabobfest.blogspot.com/...

I don't know Reema's family well but she was a very beautiful and giving soul. My heart aches for them.

At what point will a high profile Democrat begin to push into the mainstream dialog the difference between being defeated in Iraq and failing in Iraq?

Being defeated is not happening and will not happen because there is no entity in Iraq that can force our surrender simply by means of military, economic, or political force. We are there until we leave. Failing in Iraq, on the other hand, has been happening and will continue to happen. This is not a result of lack of effort, ability, or courage of our military but is entirely the fault of a failure at the highest level of this administration.

The president has asked our troops to do what cannot be done (and has asked our children and grandchildren to pay for it). It is as if he has asked us to stop the sun from rising, Who can STOP the sunrise? .

More on the flip...