DNC will no longer take lobbyist, PAC money

This is going to be one hell of a race. I wonder how and if the Republicans will respond.

“Almost all that any politician says on any topic other than political strategy should be treated with even less respect than would be accorded a professional circus-clown’s speculations about string theory.”

You have to love it when someone gets to the heart of an issue. The rest of the post is pretty good as well.

Morris hammers home the point that a fight for the nomination all the way to the Democratic Convention would serve to steal the thunder of McCain. He (McCain) would be drowned out of the front page by the shenanigans of the Democratic candidates and would be unable to really focus on either potential Democratic candidate, a very interesting and astute observation.

The fear is that Hilary’s attacks on Obama would serve to somehow damage him going into the full Presidential campaign. According to Morris, Hilary has no shot at really hurting Obama & the DNC Delegates would be absolutely crazy to nominate her. If the Democratic nominee is up for grabs all the way to the convention & Obama was crowned at the convention there would be a massive upsurge in his popularity (indeed Morris believes an insurmountable upsurge). That upswing could last the remaining nine weeks to the actual election and Obama could walk away with all the marbles.

Fascinating analysis.

UPDATE: Lessig decided not to run….

I wish I had been there to see that, just imagine 207 people completely frozen in Grand Central. Awesome, nice job ImprovEverywhere.

The Republicans, on the other hand, are a total mess. Consumed by discussions of evolution vs. creationism (are they nuts?), inexplicable shifts in position (Rudy is suddenly anti Roe v Wade, wtf), McCain’s shift the the religious, and an evangelical Minister as a frontrunner (we need LESS not MORE religion). The only way this bunch of Republican yahoos could win the White House is if the Democrats destroy themselves in the primaries. Unfortunately I wouldn’t put self-destruction past the Dems as they have proven quite adept at that.

Back to Obama though, the other piece of news is Caroline Kennedy’s brilliant endorsement in the New York Times titled A President Like My Father. I believe her endorsement may be the strongest endorsement a Kennedy has given to a candidate in recent times.

Barring any last minute entrants (Bloomberg?) Obama may be getting my vote…

In the past my preferred model for technical operations has always been NASA mission control, but I will be looking closely at Toyota Production System for insights that can improve operational preparedness and response.

Great reading and highly recommended.

I have always wondered where the dance moves in WoW come from. Wonder no more, this is absolutely awesome!

Carter & Mondale’s re-definition continued through both Republican and Democratic Presidencies. Mondale argues that Dick Cheney has re-defined the office yet again. According to Mondale (& I heartily agree), Cheney’s re-definition has taken the VP office in a disturbing direction, from trusted advisor to a powerful political office that attempts to actually limit the policy options presented to the President.

Yet another scathing examination of a Presidency in tatters. What will be the future ramifications of Cheney’s Vice Presidency? Who knows? The best possible outcome is that it is forgotten, a grimmer possibility is a permanent politicization of the office and for future Presidents the loss of another trusted objective voice.

Quantum materiae materietur marmota monax si marmota monax materiam possit materiari?

Enjoy!

I am excited to see where Lessig goes next. He is a unique and deep thinker, one that will bring a fresh perspective to the fight against corruption. In his latest blog entry Lessig cites Obama’s book and Gore’s presentations as inspirations for his change of focus. He alludes to a “Republican of Prominence” as providing the final push that resulted in his decision to move away from his “traditional” issues.

I sincerely hope Dr. Lessig well on his new focus, he will need it.

I am not a big fan of Moore’s work but Sicko is a profound moving movie with an effectively delivered and important message. American healthcare needs to be reformed and it needs to be reformed sooner rather than later. Hopefully our politicians will wake up and do something and if they don’t Sicko may wake up enough people to prompt some action. I highly recommend Sicko and I hope Moore stays out of politics.