While Sarah Palin hides from and John McCain whines about the press -- which is really a way to show how "tough" you are -- Barack Obama walks in and sits down with anti-progressive Bill O'Reilly, who hardly could be considered a friendly personality.

Barack Obama has been in debates, town halls, interviews, small group meetings for 18 months now. You can't accuse him of hiding.

Come out of your shell, Sarah Palin! Let us see past the PR! What are you afraid of?

Ever since Sarah Palin was named as John McCain's VP nominee choice, I've been irritated about it. I've been trying to isolate why. The stream of consciousness was something like this:

Who?
Huh?
Seriously?
That's how you pronounce Palin?
And who is she?
Are you kidding me?
She did what?
What a right-wing nut job!

But this nomination has irritated me beyond just that she's a reborn again religious fundamentalist who is trying to ban books and fire staffers who disagree with her and force creationism into science classes and the usual power-happy Republican.

No, she won't answer questions. We're supposed to accept that 20 months as governor of Alaska makes her a foreign policy expert. We're supposed to accept that she's really deep and well informed on the issues -- or at least enough.

No, we're just supposed to like her. We're supposed to see her, admire her beauty.

But we're not supposed to ask her questions. How dare we ask questions!

Check out Sarah Palin, the Republican Patriarchy's girlfriend!

Now before you jump all over my case, consider that it's the Republicans who are doing this to their "tough cookie". And we're supposed to buy into it. We shouldn't pick on their hockey mom.

This is serious business. This is about choosing people to lead the most powerful nation, the people who will have their thumbs on "the button."

And the Republicans just toss this woman out onto the national stage and get upset when we ask all sorts of questions! Well, she hasn't been out there campaigning like Barack Obama was, or like Hillary Clinton was. She hasn't been on the national stage like any number of conservative women who the Republicans could have picked. She's unknown.

But we're supposed to just admire her, the "hockey mom."

Well, as we learn of her history, we will ask questions, and if she can't hack it, can't even answer questions about her own obscure track record, then how is she qualified to lead this nation?

This is really just so stupid.

"I was just thinking, this Gustav is proof that there is a God in heaven," the Oscar-winning director of "Fahrenheit 911" said. "To just have it planned at the same time, that it would actually be on its way to New Orleans for Day One of the Republican convention, up in the Twin Cities, at the top of the Mississippi River."

That's right up there in mean-spirited sentiments with the utterances of Jerry Falwell and James Dobson, who has set a pretty "high" standard of horribleness.

I don't care how partisan you are -- and I'm pretty damned partisan, mind you -- you don't sing praises of disasters that seem to play in the media game against your political opponents.

How ironic that a hurricane may postpone the Republican National Convention, especially right after New Orleans put 85 more bodies to rest, making the Katrina toll over 1800 Americans.

Heckuva job! Let's elect more of the same! (Am I angry? Me? No, of course I'm not angry!)