New York Times posted the following article entitled Global Fears of a Recession Grow Stronger this morning, and...things are still really scary:

^{When the White House brought out its $700 billion rescue plan two weeks ago, its sheer size was meant to soothe the global financial system, restoring trust and confidence. Three days after the plan was approved, it looks like a pebble tossed into a churning sea. Read the entire article.}

Pictures from the Virginia Tech Homecoming Parade in which Democracy Prevails participated along with MCDC and the VA Tech Young Dems. You could see the maroon and orange Tech colors mixed with the red, white, and blue of our Democratic candidate signs all down main street and on the Tech campus.

 

 

Thanks, Lone Star Iconoclast for showing Dubya and McCain/Palin some special love.
                    

EDITORIAL
Sunday, October 05, 2008
By Nathan Diebenow, Don M. Fisher, W. Leon Smith

We Trust Obama
2008 Presidential Endorsement

So, how’s that free market economy working for you?

This time four years ago, The Lone Star Iconoclast, as the hometown newspaper for President George W. Bush, endorsed Sen. John Kerry for president. Back then, we wholeheartedly believed Kerry would restore order to the chaos of the previous Bush term. Now, we feel called to return for a moment from exile near Crawford, Texas, to witness another presidential election and throw our two cents in...

We trust Sen. Barack Obama to be our next President of the United States....

Read the entire endorsement.

The L.A Times has a short biographical piece on Steve Schmidt, McCain’s chief strategist who came on in the summer to give some oomph to a sagging campaign. At this point in the race, however, it is hard to say whether his approach helped or hurt. Although he denies it, Schmidt’s time in Washington during the Bush Administration gave him the opportunity to become Karl Rove’s protégé, and some say that his nickname "bullet" is appropriate for the way he operates--aggressively attacking the opponent, in this case, Obama, fully focused on the goal, and extremely controlling, especially the day’s news cycle to the point that one McCain staffer called him the "message Nazi."

His high stakes strategy sometimes works, and sometimes it doesn’t. For example, "convinced that McCain needed a dramatic gesture to make the race competitive, he pressed the candidate to pluck the Alaska governor from obscurity." As this contest is occurring during the worst financial disaster since the Great Depression, it might have been good to secure a running mate who knows "something" about the economy. Schmidt seems to have been all about the "dramatic gesture" rather than vetting. The base might be energized, but it is the persuadable middle that both candidates need to win; Palin’s stands on the issues, her inexperience, and her folksy charm have not reversed the trend toward Obama for this group.

I’d like to think the public has wised up, and the Rovian character assassination tactics (the same kinds used against Gore and Kerry) don’t work. I’d like to think that just plucking any inexperienced person who has not even been fully vetted to stand a heartbeat away from the Presidency is appalling to all voters, I’d like to think that voters want information about issues, not distractions, but I’m not at all sure that's what is occurring here. If we were not facing a monumental financial meltdown, I wonder if it would be the "Entertainment Tonight" gossip and rumors that would drive the election. I hope not. I’d like to hope that we are so tired of being lied to and used that we are ready to reject this type of manipulation outright. I’d like to hope that we can elect Barack Obama who will be the type of leader to transcend the muck. We, as a nation, need hope.

 

Latest in the series of Saturday Night Live skits featuring Tina Fey as Sarah Palin. Each new skit seems better than the last.


      

Here's Michael Moore's idea for rescuing the economy--

As he says, "I would like to propose my own bailout plan. My suggestions, listed below, are predicated on the singular and simple belief that the rich must pull themselves up by their own platinum bootstraps...."

It is a little lengthy, but his plan is well worth reading about. Here is the beginning paragraph:

The richest 400 Americans -- that's right, just four hundred people -- own MORE than the bottom 150 million Americans combined. 400 rich Americans have got more stashed away than half the entire country! Their combined net worth is $1.6 trillion. During the eight years of the Bush Administration, their wealth has increased by nearly $700 billion -- the same amount that they are now demanding we give to them for the "bailout." Why don't they just spend the money they made under Bush to bail themselves out? They'd still have nearly a trillion dollars left over to spread amongst themselves!

 

Daily Kos daily tracking poll for today has Obama up by 12 points--52% to 40%. Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes!!! See the trendlines from 9/11 through 10/5.

RK had this video up last night. Can you believe it--trying to pit one part of NOVA against another? As a Virginian, I'm miffed. Seriously, isn't that claim a little desperate? Be sure to read the follow-up RK also posted today.  


                   

This must be the latest McCain/Palin strategy: scare women into supporting Palin by telling them they are bound for hell if they don't. At a campaign rally in California, she misquoted Madeline Albright by threatening the following:
"There's a place in Hell reserved for women who don't support other women."

There is the real quote:
"There's a place in Hell reserved for women who don't help other women."

Wonder if she just got confused or if this another little distraction cooked up by those pesky campaign strategists?

This has been floating around the "Internets" for a couple of days; in case you haven't seen it, here is the Sarah Palin Debate Flow Chart: