[Ferraro] ignited a flap by telling a California newspaper that "if Obama was a white man, he would not be in this position."

"And if he was a woman he would not be in this position. He happens to be very lucky to be who he is. And the country is caught up in the concept," Ferraro said.

Source: Clinton supporter defends Obama race remarks

What a load of bollocks. I think there might be reasons other than being Black in Obama's case. However I think the only reason Clinton is still in the nomination race is because she's a woman.

Michelle Obama speaks in Delaware:

Part One
Part Two
Part Three
Part Four
Part Five
Part Six

"Watching her, I started to feel oddly sorry for her husband's opponent."
- Jean Marbella, Baltimore Sun

The first is a short, amateur produced documentary on what really happened in Portland, OR, in 2002, when a supposedly peaceful demonstration was broken up by Police. At the time it was reported as "the demonstration turned violent" but somehow the producers of the film got their hands on the authorities' own videotapes of the incident. Narrated by someone who says they were there at the protest.

This is What A Police State Looks Like

The second is the results of the New Hampshire Democratic Primary election. Many people have commented on the variations between exit poll numbers and actual vote counts when comparing manual counting with the results reported from electronic voting machines. The fundimental points are:

• Why should exit polls be reliable result indicators everywhere except where electronic voting machines are used?
• Why should the EVM results be biased in favor of any particular candidate?

We ignore questions like this at our peril. It doesn't have to be conspiracy but we'd better know what is really happening. I have no opinion on whether there was any actual vote rigging taking place. I'm not qualified. However it is really encouraging to see people from around the country collaborate online on ad-hoc analysis projects such as this one:
http://www.eurotrib.com/story/2008/1/12/191247/981

So that was New Hampshire last week or so. Meanwhile, in South Carolina, they can't even get the machines to accept votes:
http://www.bradblog.com/?p=5579

It is clear to me that electronic voting machines should not be used, ever, because while they are in use we will never be free of this crap.

* Only 2? Clearly I'm not looking hard enough.

Yup, no more words needed.

Here's another thought: the fluctuations in supply and price of gas and diesel over the next month that will be a consequence of the disruption to the refineries in the gulf coastal regions will be a preview of what things will be like when the oil starts to run out. Maybe the right people will take notice and direct more funds towards preparing for this.

I think "US out now" as a simple mantra neglects to consider the full range of possible disasters... there would be an Iraq civil war. [..]

People often allege that the US military isn't doing any good in Iraq and there is already a civil war. These people have never actually seen a civil war and do not appreciate the lid the US military is keeping on what could be a volcano. [..]

If there is a civil war now that kills a million people, with ethnic cleansing and millions of displaced persons, it will be our fault, or at least the fault of the 75% of Americans who supported the war. [..]

If a regional guerrilla war breaks out among Kurds, Turks, Shiites and Sunni Arabs, the guerrillas could well apply the technique of oil pipeline sabotage to Iran and Saudi Arabia, just as they do now to the Kirkuk pipeline in Iraq. If 20% of the world's petroleum production were taken off-line by such sabotage, the poor of the world would be badly hurt, and the whole world would risk another Great Depression. [..]

People on the left often don't like it when I bring this scenario up, because they dislike oil; they read it as a variant of the "war for oil" thesis and reject it. But working people [..] get to work on buses, and buses burn gasoline. If the bus ticket doubles or triples, people who make $10,000 a year feel it. Moreover, if there is a depression, the janitors and other workers will be the first to be fired.