PastaJoe

I'm sorry for the loss of your friends, but no soldier dies in vain. They are obeying orders, and regardless of what orders the civilian leadership give them, they carry out their duty. Consider that your friends may not have had to give their lives if Obama's judgement on invading Iraq had been followed. And ones military service does not automatically make someone the most qualified to be president. Carter went to the Naval Academy and served aboard a submarine, while Reagan spent WWII in the U.S. as a Public Relations officer. Which do conservatives believe was the better president? W. was in the National Guard, Clinton didn't serve, yet most Americans would say Clinton was the better president.

Who was the highest paid individual in Senator John McCain’s presidential campaign during the first half of October as it headed down the homestretch? Not Randy Scheunemann, Mr. McCain’s chief foreign policy adviser; not Nicolle Wallace, his senior communications staff member. It was Amy Strozzi, who was identified by the Washington Post this week as Gov. Sarah Palin’s traveling makeup artist, according to a new filing with the Federal Election Commission on Thursday night. Ms. Strozzi, who was nominated for an Emmy award for her makeup work on the television show “So You Think You Can Dance?”, was paid $22,800 for the first two weeks of October alone, according to the records. The campaign categorized Ms. Strozzi’s payment as “PERSONNEL SVC/EQUIPMENT.” The payment on Oct. 10 made Ms. Strozzi the single highest-paid individual in the campaign for that two-week period. (There were more than two dozen companies that got larger payments than Ms. Strozzi). She easily beat out Mr. Scheunemann, who received $12,500 in the first half of October, and Ms. Wallace, who got $12,000. http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/10...-2-week-period/

And don't forget to include those Iranians. Those Muslims, err, Arabs, err Persians are also an imminent threat.

Christian: of, pertaining to, believing in, or belonging to the religion based on the teachings of Jesus Christ. Mormon: the popular name given to a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Regardless, should we be watching the Mormons closely like the Muslims?

I just read about this today in the Buffalo News. Oh wait, actually it was about a Christian Fundamentalist sect in Arizona and Nevada. http://www.buffalonews.com/cityregion/story/471550.html

1. The Office 2. The Shield 3. Sons of Anarchy 4. Terminator: Sarah Connor Chronicles 5. Top Chef 6. Survivor 7. Ramsey's Kitchen Nightmares Animated: The Venture Brothers, Family Guy, Mission Hill

Perhaps tossup states would have been a better term, since Obama has larger leads in NH and PA.

That would be a good nickname for the McCain-Palin team: Dead-Heat. Of course the battleground state polls are the only ones that matter, and RealClearPolitics still has Obama ahead in all of them; Florida, Ohio, Nevada, NC, Missouri, Colorado, and Virginia. Even if McCain won all of those, given the solid and leaning states, the best he could do is a 269-269 tie, which would throw the election to the House. McCain needs a game chang..uh, I mean event modifier to pull an additional Obama state away from him. http://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/ma...vs_mccain/#data

FINDLAY, Ohio (CNN) –- In an interview posted online Wednesday, Sarah Palin told Dr. James Dobson of “Focus on the Family” that she is confident God will do “the right thing for America” on Nov. 4. Dobson asked the vice presidential hopeful if she is concerned about John McCain’s sagging poll numbers, but Palin stressed that she was “not discouraged at all.” “To me, it motivates us, makes us work that much harder,” she told the influential Christian leader, whose radio show reaches tens of millions of listeners daily. “And it also strengthens my faith because I know at the end of the day putting this in God’s hands, the right thing for America will be done, at the end of the day on Nov. 4.” She also thanked her supporters — including Dobson, who said he and his wife were asking “for God’s intervention” on election day — for their prayers of support. “It is that intercession that is so needed,” she said. “And so greatly appreciated. And I can feel it too, Dr. Dobson. I can feel the power of prayer, and that strength that is provided through our prayer warriors across this nation. And I so appreciate it.” http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/

Oct. 21 (Bloomberg) -- Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff said the U.S. may be vulnerable to a terrorist attack during the next six months, with violent groups more likely to try to take advantage of a new president and administration. ``Any period of transition creates a greater vulnerability, meaning there's more likelihood of distraction,'' Chertoff said in an interview. ``You have to be concerned it will create an operational opportunity for terrorists.'' He said that would be true whether Democrat Barack Obama or Republican John McCain is elected president on Nov. 4. That comment undercuts McCain's argument that the U.S. would be more in danger of an attack if Obama, 47, wins. Chertoff said not all threats the U.S. faces are physical. As head of the administration's effort to secure the government's computer networks, Chertoff said technicians are upgrading the so-called Einstein protection system to detect and disrupt cyber attacks. Currently, the system can detect hacking only after it has occurred. http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=206...;refer=politics

Technically a campaign isn't a paying job for the candidate or their family, so it is personal use. They're using it to get a job. Are we allowed to write off buying a suit for a job interview?

The cash expenditures immediately raised questions among campaign finance experts about their legality under the Federal Election Commission's long-standing advisory opinions on using campaign cash to purchase items for personal use. Politico asked the McCain campaign for comment, explicitly noting the $150,000 in expenses for department store shopping and makeup consultation that were incurred immediately after Palin’s announcement. Pre-September reports do not include similar costs. Spokeswoman Maria Comella declined to answer specific questions about the expenditures, including whether it was necessary to spend that much and whether it amounted to one early investment in Palin or if shopping for the vice presidential nominee was ongoing. A review of similar records for the campaign of Democrat Barack Obama and the Democratic National Committee turned up no similar spending. http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1008/14805.html

McCain should have considered the implications of voting with Bush 90% of the time, and presenting Bush-like policies regarding Iraq, corporate tax breaks, and the economy. Bush isn't running, but his policies are as offered by McCain.

Maybe the guy had a bad case of belly lint and the hose slipped down. Sounds like an episode of that SNL skit (Appalacian Emergency Room?) where the one guy always comes in with something "accidently" stuck up his rear.

I heard someone say that he's gone from being a social conservative to being a conservative socialist.

I think it's more likely an NHL team would relocate to Kansas City. They just built a new arena, it doesn't have a major occupant, and they want to bring in an NHL or NBA team. The Penguins were considering moving there before they got an agreement for a new arena.

If she said "I don't support abortion, but I think women have the right to decide for themselves" as a Republican, she would never have been chosen because the Republicans would have focused on "women have the right to decide for themselves". Ask Rudy, Tom Ridge, or Liebermann.

Is there something wrong with trying to repair relations with Muslims, and using his personal experience of knowing how stereotypes can lead to mischaracterizing people?

I'm waiting for Republicans to complain that this immigrant dog will be taking away the job of being a pet that could go to an American dog that is at the ASPCA.

Powell specifically said that if it was just about him supporting a black candidate, he could have done it months ago. He said he wanted to evaluate both men and how they acted and reacted to events, and how they acted during the financial crisis a couple weeks ago was the clincher. I guess some of you still see him as a black general and black sec. of state, not just a general and sec. of state.

But pick 29 will be from us swapping 1st round picks and giving up our 2010 1st round pick to the Titans for Vince Young.

Barack HUSSAIN Obama is black?! OMG, I thought he was Arab! Listening to the McCain/Palin rallies is so confusing.

So you're saying Palin thinks being racist is pro-American?

From the campaign trail, Palin's speech last night: Palin also made a point of mentioning that she loved to visit the "pro-America" areas of the country, of which North Carolina is one. No word on which states she views as unpatriotic. http://voices.washingtonpost.com/the-trail...ssed_palin.html

When is McCain going to come clean about deciding to stay in Vietnam when he could have left? Why should we believe his version of the story? Did he stay to get further indoctrination for the day he would become the Manchurian Candidate? His daily association with Communists needs to be further explained. The silly stuff can work both ways, it's just that McCain has decided it's more important to distract with accusations without proof, while Obama is focusing on the relevant issues.