All of us have seen a number of diaries on MyDD advancing the idea of some kind of joint ticket. Most of the time, the idea gets shot down with the "who's on top" debate. But, an article on Slate.com proposes a positively brilliant way that we can have both candidates, each one with a period "on top" - PLUS (drumroll, please) a way to have them both for four full terms. Here's the link:

http://www.slate.com/id/2187034/

So, whaddya think?

In my view, the biggest problem with the Rev Wright brouhaha is that Barack Obama has violated the First Rule of Politics: Never get yourself in a situation where a 30-second sound bite has to be explained away in a 30-minute speech. The 30-second sound bite will win every time.

It is pointless to exhort people to "listen to the whole sermon." In the first place, most people won't bother. In the second place, if you have to resort to an argument about context, you lose. And, finally, even if people did read the whole sermon, it wouldn't have the magical effect some people think it would have. I HAVE read the text of the sermon, and, believe me, there is no context provided by the "whole sermon" that can offset the effect of the 30-second sound bite of Rev Wright screaming racist, anti-American vitriol.

If Barack had the political judgment he claims, he would have known this would come back to bite him if he continued to attend this church and remain silent in the face of his beloved pastor's paranoid ranting.