Good for him.

Although there were parts of the speech that were false (such as his claims on tax policies), for the most part McCain returned to his Senatorial self that we saw until about 18 months ago. Before the presidential ambition set in, he was an honest pragmatist. One who acknowledged differences with others, but didn't denigrate them for their differences. Ambition has blinded him, and regardless of the outcome of the election, hopefully he'll return to his former self in Novemeber. If Obama wins, McCain will be a good partner in the Senate.

I noticed that the crowd was half-asleep for his and Bill Frist's speeches. Everyone was talking while Frist was speaking of the importance of giving medical aid to the poor in developing countries - the first positive message of the week. During the speech, they cut to Henry Kissinger, who appeared to be massaging a man's forearm (After reading Hitchens' The Trial of Henry Kissinger, I like to think that punishment for his war crimes is to give a forearm massage to a strange man each day). The entire crowd was genuinly disinterested in hearing about humanitarian causes. They wanted the political blood that Palin and Giuliani provided. I know conventions are silly circle-jerks, but this disinterest revealed the path of the Republican party. It's sad, because I know McCain is a humanitarian, just as Frist and most people in Congress are. They're probably more bothered by this than I am. But their base has been taken over by a bunch of whakos. 

When are rogue protesters who show up at speeches yelling like buffoons going to realize that they're hurting their cause infinitely more than they're helping? They end up looking like the starfuckers who run onto a football field during a game.

Last political thing... 

There are a lot of valid points to be made against Sarah Palin. I'm not even going to start with them. Just read the news. They'll be coming out one-by-one. When lefty bloggers stretch the truth and slander, it diminishes the effect of the truth. Asking if her baby is really hers will dampen the effect of a couple valid criticisms. Now it's known - there is email documentation, and public account - of her asking if she can ban certain books 3x, while mayor of Wasilla. And we know she fired the librarian who refused to do so, only to re-hire her after a wave of public outrage. That's enough. That's the story. Can't get any worse in terms of free-speech, free-thought and education. However, now there's an email going around, and many extreme left blogs are citing a list of books that she wants to ban. Problem is, there's no way the list is accurate. The bloggers couldn't be satisfied without a list though. It's pretty much a list of everyone's favorite books, including many that couldn't be deemed offensive by anyone. There are the usual book-burner favorites, like The Catcher in the Rye, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings (Maya Angelou's memoir that is actually banned in many school systems. It's a great book, and I'm glad it was suggested reading for my ninth grade English class.), A Clockwork Orange, Lord of the Flies... you get the picture.  But most of the list set off a red flag: A Wrinkle in Time, Brave New World, a few Harry Potter books that were written after the supposed request, As I Lay Dying, To Kill a Mockingbird, Leaves of Grass, One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich, Twelfth Night, and most-ridiculously, A Bridge to Teribithia. 

There's no need for slander or libel. Let facts speak for themselves. And for those who slander and distort, let truth be their ruin. In other words, people like this will destroy themselves. You don't have to help them.