From the "You can't parody a parody" department:

Residents of a Colorado "homeowners association" (read: homogeneity association,) demand removal of a peace sign Christmas wreath:

Las Vegas SUN: Colo. Residents Spar Over Peace Sign

Here's the lede and best graf, noting that there are two primary complaints about the horrifying symbol, both of which are just the pinnacle of head-up-assery:

A homeowners association in southwestern Colorado has threatened to fine a resident $25 a day until she removes a Christmas wreath with a peace sign that some say is an anti-Iraq war protest or a symbol of Satan.

Some residents who have complained have children serving in Iraq, said Bob Kearns, president of the Loma Linda Homeowners Association in Pagosa Springs. He said some residents have also believed it was a symbol of Satan. Three or four residents complained, he said.

It reminds us of the seminal scene in the King of the Hill Christmas episode. Hank and his father Cotton were shopping for Xmas decor, and Hank showed his dad an ornament that said, "Peace on Earth." Cotton, a Korean war vet, was disgusted by this lefty sentiment, and Hank's response still echoes in my ears: "C'mon dad, it's Jesus peace, not hippie peace."

It would appear that the criminal wreath hanger would agree with Hank:

Lisa Jensen said she wasn't thinking of the war when she hung the wreath. She said, "Peace is way bigger than not being at war. This is a spiritual thing."

And we agree with her. Peace.

And so it begins:

Romney trashes McCain, and the '08 race is officially underway:

Romney: ‘I’m a conservative Republican’ - Examiner.com

Here's hoping they destroy each other on the way to the nomination, but it's not likely to happen.

Education Secretary, on Jeopardy, Loses to 'Lenny' but not squiggy.

No snark necessary. This post writes itself:

See It Now

In fairness to Sec. Spellings, Mike McKean is pretty smart. In fairness to Mike McKean, he'd make a thousand times better education secretary than Margaret Spellings.

From the "No excuse left behind," department:

"I think I held my own," Spellings said in an interview Tuesday, hours before the show aired. She noted McKean had an edge, having been on the show before.

Suskind on Oversight

The chronicler of the 1% doctrine tells the new congress how to use their new found authority, and we like how he thinks:

Send in the Subpoenas - washingtonpost.com

Or just read Kevin's 1 paragraph summary: See It Now

The Floyd Void

Maybe Floyd Landis did win the Tour after all:

Landis lab made 'administrative error' - Yahoo! News

Then again maybe not.

RIP Adrienne Shelly

It's not exactly our beat, but she was an incredible actress, and one of Hal Hartley's faves, and since he's our fave, we note with great sadness the passing of someone whose talent outweighed her celebrity:

Adrienne Shelly Murdered in Faked Suicide - OhmyNews International

The truth will out. As soon as the elections are over.

It's not our bailiwick but here's the latest on Pat Tillman's death:

AP: Startling findings in Tillman probe - Yahoo! News

It's almost impossible to believe that one of the soldiers who was (unfortunately,) responsible was named, get this, "Ashpole."

Makes me wish more people paid attention to this story so that that name could become an insult the way "Santorum" has.

And keep in mind that Spc. Ashpole is not the bad guy here. Friendly fire happens. The bad guys are the higher-ups who should leave the military fiction writing to Jim Webb and the cover-ups to Nixon, (Clinton Cheney Hastert Rove etc.)

On Frist Corker and Ford

Republican Hangs On to Frist’s Senate Seat - New York Times

Full disclosure: The Eight gave to McCaskill and Ford in very small amounts this cycle, and does not regret the choice. In both cases, the ad that drew national attention was a big part of the impetus for our donations (the Mike Fox ad in MO and subsequent Limbaugh fiasco, and the Racist anti-ford ad in TN.)

Dems and talking heads are saying that Ford ran a good campaign and his future is bright and he stayed above the fray of racist and family-oriented attacks, and they're right about all that. But look at it another way: Assume that Burns pulls it out in Montana, (actually we clearly hope he won't. Burns is the worst kind of GOP bum. But just assume for these purposes.) And that Webb holds on in VA. If that's how it shakes out, then the racist ad that Corker's backers aired, and we've all seen no matter how far away we live from TN or how vigilantly we TiVo'd through all political ads, that one nasty, racist ad may be the very thing that keeps the GOP senate. You certainly can't point to a bigger single action that held a GOP seat. And you can't deny that that ad was instrumental in the Corker win.


And that is the Southern Strategy all over again. It's playing the race card. And that's really the last card left in the GOP deck when the game gets close, which is a betrayal of their stated party principles and of what most republican citizens believe. It's why I always tell my Texan friends and family I don't hate republicans, just republican politicians.


But on the whole I think this election painted a picture of an America I can be reasonably proud of, and not just because Dems won big. Mainly because it showed that there is a point where we get fed up with bad leadership. (I'd have preferred we reached that point 2 years ago, but that's just me.) It also showed that we as a nation love our game more than we love or hate the players. That checks and balances and oversight and accountability are just as important as "strong" "charismatic" "leaders".

Clearly I need to watch my TiVo'd Gilmore Girls and go to bed. Go Tester Go Webb. Watch Friday Night Lights next week and tell your friends to watch too, especially your Nielsen family friends.

---LATE AND LAST UPDATE: With 99% reporting in Montana Tester is ahead a couple thousand. This is very good news, though nothing is sealed until 10 days after the check clears. I can sleep soundly now. ---

Off Topic, but important:

Okay, this is just about the craziest thing I have ever seen:

Hussein Asks Iraqi Factions to Reconcile - washingtonpost.com

Let's see if Bush can be as conciliatory and magnanimous at his presser later today. Granted there's no noose hanging over his head, but he may feel as though there is.

Back on topic, things to keep in mind this week: Rove is actually more of a genius when it comes to recounting and litigating close elections (read, better at election theft,) than he is at winning outright. So look for him to pull every last rabbit out of every last hat in the 6-10 House races and 2 Senate races that look contestable. And how much of the whiny baby party can they afford to look like trying to contest 10 house elections while they're also trying to win a war. I'd be tempted to say it's shameful, if I thought that shame was an extant emotion in DC.

And please note that they berated Kerry and Gore for belaboring these drawn out counts, and now they are going to do the exact same thing. Hypocrisy. And you can bet that they will complain about the election machinery too, even though any flaws in the process are their fault, and even though they belittled Dems for complaining about the same things in past elections. Double hypocrisy. See TPM probably all week long for more on this.

If Elections last more than 36 hours consult your doctor.

HA!

We agree with Joshie up and down the line on this:
Talking Points Memo: by Joshua Micah Marshall November 8, 2006 12:24 AM

Take five minutes to enjoy tonite's victory and then get your asses back to work tomorrow. Nothing was made easier today. If anything, the next two years will be quite tough for Dems. But it's a challenge we should relish.

Hilary Clinton said in her victory adress: "Democracy is alive and well." I will give her alive, and that's to be commended. But I am not ready to concede the well. Now that we have the gavel, let's get to oversighting on this bi-otch.

And meditate on victories for Webb and Tester and McCaskill as you sleep and as you arise tomorrow. Every little bit helps.

God Bless America. LATE UPDATE-- And while we're at it, God Bless Iraq. They need it more than we do.

Go Tester Go Webb Go to Bed.

Palast Predicts

We hope he's wrong, but he's usually right, so read this at your own internal peril.

HOW THEY STOLE THE MID-TERM ELECTION Greg Palast

Make sure you get to the end, because he finishes strong.

Suggested Onion Headline for Wednesday if things tomorrow go poorly: "Democrats Retain Grip on Powerlessness."

Two ways the Repubs have already won this year, results be damned: How much have you heard about the environment this cycle? How much have you heard about making our elections fair before this week? If your answers to the above were "Shockingly little on both counts," then congratulate your right wing friends, because they have bested you.

US Presidential Speeches Tag Cloud - Chirag Mehta : chir.ag

This is great. If you don't know what a tag cloud is there's a primer at the top of the page. And while this loads to Bush, there's a slider at the top of the page that takes the concept all the way back to Washington.

US Presidential Speeches Tag Cloud - Chirag Mehta : chir.ag

Can you guess what two words are Bush's most used? I'll give you three guesses and the first two don't count.

Cuh-Lassic!!

This is one of those things that would be absolutely hilarious if the fate of our nation didn't hang in the balance:

The Raw Story | Video: Congressman takes incriminating documents away from reporter

Even with that, it's still quite amusing. Plus the guy (Tim Murphy, R-PA,) made such a bonehead move that this local news toss off went national with 4 days to go. He could have simply no commented and no one would ever have heard about it.

To steal a quote from the (slightly,) better President Bush, It's the idiocy, Stupid.

Not as tasty as push pops

It's about time that the push polls from Common Sense [name of state] that TPM and co have been pointing to for a week got some attention in a real paper:

Last-Minute Push Polls Send Some Voters Over the Edge -

Note that even though this article is about only GOP push polling, the party is not identified in the headline, so headline-only readers will assume it's one more thing that, "both sides do equally." This is simply not true. Dems are not above dirty tricks, but they by and large do adhere to certain principles, and while there are any number of distasteful Dem ads out there now, I defy anyone to show me a Dem push-poll or phone jam or voter intimidation effort or any other illegal electioneering. This is the choice we face on Tuesday. It's not about Bush and it's definitely not about Kerry. It's about listening to the better angels of our nature and choosing checks and balances; or continuing to obey our worst instincts and ordering up two more years of one-party rule. I've already voted and you can probably guess how, but I still have no prediction, aside from a familiar tightness in my gut, as to what the country will decide on Tuesday. I try to soothe my trepidation with Josh Marshall's new mantra: "Feel the wave. Be the wave." I'll let the WaPo have the last word:

"People who know won't be fooled," [Sate Sen. Lawlah] said. "It's the people who don't keep up with politics they are trying to reach."

If that's you then read the article at the link above.

Next Tuesday in a nutshell

See It Now

War is hell

If you're on the ground. Too bad Bush Cheney and Rumsfeld never had the pleasure.

Revealed: U.S. Soldier Killed Herself After Objecting to Interrogation Techniques

Who supports those troops?