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I'm thinking about donating some of my hard earned cash to Obama's political campaign. I should say that while he is not perfect, i think he's going to be amazing for the USA and i look forward to a kinder, wiser and more noble administration than has been seen in a generation or 2. However the english in me feels rather sad and let down by the idea that despite this amazing and inspired leader, he might loose because of political slandering by a trumped up excuse of a human being who fails at standing up for anything he believes in just to get elected. The budget of a state senatorial campaign would probably dwarf the election costs of an entire british political party.... In the UK i know Obama would win, it might take the length of one of his speeches, but his intelligence, principles, charisma and wisdom would bring him straight to number ten with a landslide. Should i be pragmatic (The system is flawed, but i can help Obama winning with donations), or should i be principled (Obama should win on his own merits, not on how much advertising capital he can raise)? I have to say i'm leaning towards the pragmatic... but i'm curious as to what people think? P.S. If McCain wins, i'm planning to retreat back to the UK, provided you pay for a large bag in the hold you are welcome to come back with me (My parents have been requested to clear out the spare room for political refugees...)

For my American readers, you may not know about Mock the Week, its a BBC satirical show about the week's news, and nobody is safe (except Obama, who they described in terms of the second coming), and their favorite punching bag this week... John McCain. The topics of attack included

• Apparently the best person the republicans could come up with was someone who was considered less competant than Bush
• Getting shot down 5 times and sent to a prisoner of war camp doesn't make you a war hero, it just makes you a really rubbish pilot
• Apparently due to his torture he can't raise his hands above his head... i hadn't heard this one before, but it was made heavy use of
• His age and general likelyhood of dying of natural causes were also up for ridicule
Personally i do normally enjoy Mock the Week, and some of their points were valid, but the general level of jokes were pretty pathetic, and some in bad taste. That said, McCain deserves a thorough satirical roasting, this was a pale attempt at it. Still if McCain gets elected, i can just see the BBC being declared a terrorist organization...
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I know i'm a bit late on this, mainly because i only watched the countdown podcast this evening. I've tried to maintain an interest in US politics, but its difficult to do when you are on the other side of the ocean. After coming here i've tried to make up for lost time, but even then my first real exposure to John McCain was in the Iowa debate. I saw someone who made my skin crawl, he honestly struck me as someone "scary beyond all reason", and when he finally rose to the republican leadership i found my inital gut reaction confirmed time and again. But i didn't have the historical depth to know enough about his history, beyond his status as a Viet-Cong prisoner of war and his rather slimy entry into US politics. Comments like a hundred years in iraq, and lack of any knowledge about the world outside his bedroom, his attitudes to people who disagree with him, all helped confirmed my feeling that this is the president we were warned about. The one that would be so insane as to press the button. Then came the "its not important" comment, and after all the attempts to defend the indefensible, Keith Olbermann delivered this commentary. Part 2 Honestly, countdown can at best be called infotainment, it would not be considered news anywhere in Europe, but Keith Olbermann does sometimes channel the person he attempts to emulate. He may not be Edward R. Munrrow, and the republican party is far more calculating and intelligent than Joe McCarthy, but if enough people listen to him, they might start thinking again.

To my understanding former presidents retain their title, and since Gore won the 2000 Election, he retains that title. Today he has been given the Nobel Peace Prize (Shared with the UN climate change panel), for his actions in attempting to fight climate change and bring awareness of Man Made climate change. While many (including myself) would like to see a Gore '08 ticket, i'm somewhat opposed to him trying to run, because this race is going to be messy on a scale not seen in a generation, and i'd rather not see him get damaged by the fray. I still like Barack Obama both as a Candidate and as a Person who would help restore American legitimacy at home and abroad. I hope he's half as decent as he claims to be.. If Ron Paul gets in i may have to leave because i wont feel safe in this country, to much of who and what i am, he despises. Back to the original, Go Gore :) and unless we get Barack (or even a long game playing Hilary), looking forward to a Gore '12 ticket.

Okay technically this isn't the true smoking gun.. BUT this is still enough evidence to have this criminal dragged(by the legal system of course) from office and thrown in dark dank hole, or wherever else you throw war criminals? Bush Trial Evidence Piece 1 Admittedly in the UK you just have a vote of no confidence, he (or she), is removed from office, and at the same time criminal proceedings can be brought. You guys need to impeach him, and any of his friends who are protecting him (Nancy Pelosi for example) Now is your time America, give those soldiers who have been slaughtered, maimed and brutalised by this man's actions a sense of justice. Give the world a reason to believe you are a country of justice, of law, of idealism again. (Found via Stupid Evil Bastard)