A poll taken earlier this month on the on-line site for Military Industry Today (a news service for military industry professionals) had some startling results.  Or maybe not.

The question was this:

Regardless of your general preferences, which U.S. presidential candidate's Iraq policy do you support?

The results below the fold.

Number 5 out of the Top 10 Executing Countries in 2007, per Amnesty International (PDF):

I can't make this up.

This is what John McCain's official advisor Douglas Holtz-Eakin said.

Douglas Holtz-Eakin, McCain’s chief economic adviser, says the numbers he provided to the TPC aren’t secret—they’re the same ones he provides to anyone who asks. He also disputes the way the study takes suggestions McCain has made on the stump out of context. "This is parsing words out of campaign appearances to an unreasonable degree," Holtz-Eakin said. "He has certainly I’m sure said things in town halls" that don’t jibe perfectly with his written plan. But that doesn’t mean it’s official.

I really enjoyed the sunset tonight. Usually I post sunset photos in Top Comments but there are just too many to choose from tonight.

So if you would like to see the view from my window this evening than check out the fifteen photos below.

It is not simply a matter of stagecraft.  The mass adulation Barack Obama's international tour has received, Frank Rich argues in this week's column, is a matter of the power Illinois's junior senator has amassed to shape events, become must-see television, and set the agenda for what politics are discussed in this country.

What made this possible?  The title of Rich's column gives a hint: How Obama Became Acting President.

Another cornerstone of the Daily Kos community is the comments written by its members—over twenty-three thousand in the past twenty-four hours. There were excellent examples to be found, so you can check out nominations from those of your fellow Kossacks who were around to read them in the past 24 hours.

If you saw any great comments that are not mentioned here, please link to them in your own comments below. The address of that mailbox:

TopComments AT gmail DOT com
(change " AT " to "@" and " DOT " to ".")

Anyone can submit deserving comments to our address—the direct link to a comment is available from that comment's date/time—as long as they arrive by 9:30pm Eastern Time. Please always include your Daily Kos user name in the body of your message, so we can credit you properly. Both link and username are important.

Over the weekend, I had a house full of very rich Republicans from a virtually all-Republican town in Connecticut who were staying at my bed and breakfast because all their daughters attend camp nearby.

They're all voting for Barack. None have ever voted for a Democrat in a presidential election. But they can't stand John McCain and think Barack is the visionary leader our nation has long been starving for.

Did you notice?

Mccain's new ad uses footage of Barack Obama playing basketball with the troops, to argue that he has been ignoring them. I cannot imagine anything more disingenuous...or more stupid.

I have been posting sample scripts for a counterattack and I hope the Obama camp will seize on the basketball footage for their pushback.

This ad works with either Reed or Webb or any military person:

Hi, I'm Senator ____

You may have seen John Mccain's new ad that launches false attacks against Barack Obama for "ignoring our troops".  It's an ad so misleading that it actually includes footage of Barack Obama playing basketball with our troops on his recent trip to Kuwait, in order to make its point.

If John Mccain wants to use the troops as a political football that's his choice. But he was one of only __ Senators, who stood with George Bush in opposing our new GI Bill, a bill that was supported overwhelmingly by Democrats and Republicans alike, and meant to give our returning men and women all the benefits they deserve. John Mccain said it was "too generous".

Barack Obama stood with our troops. John Mccain stood with George Bush.

Barack was today in London, enjoying some good weather (yep, it happens sometimes) and discussing some foreign policy. BBC News reports:

A beaming Gordon Brown welcomed his guest into No 10's rose-garlanded terrace. His meeting with Gordon Brown was a very British affair. The prime minister looked genuinely cheerful as he basked in the sunshine and the star power of the Democratic candidate.

... As they settled into wicker chairs, they shared cold drinks, a plate of chocolate biscuits and a discussion about foreign policy. Then came an unexpected walkabout among the tourists in Horse Guards Parade.

They do look pretty good together, don't they? A bit too good, some will say:

Downing Street appeared to be pushing protocol to the limit - but officials said the two men simply wanted to enjoy the sunshine and that it was raining when Senator McCain visited.

Yeah right, it's raining McCain.

WYFP is our community's Saturday evening gathering to talk about our problems, empathize with one another, and share advice, pootie pictures, favorite adult beverages, and anything else that we think might help. Everyone and all sorts of troubles are welcome. May we find peace and healing here. Won't you please share the joy of WYFP by recommending?

I posted a happy story last week about how well the maritime school handled an incident of my son being taunted at sailing camp.  But some issues have legs and this one won't end.  I have watched my son twist himself into knots trying to make some girl treat him decently while she continues to be ugly.  And I've been reminded of all the times I tried to get people to like me, or respect me, or treat me decently over my life time.  I don't waste much time with that now, although I continue to be tempted regularly.  I've learned that expending energy in that way is just wasted effort.

My Son Gabe's Obama Donation Link

By now, it seems that most people here are aware of the new,disgusting ad that the McCain camp is putting out. Let us show our support for Senator Obama by donating to the campaign.

Let's give Senator Obama the financial means to fight these smears and to finish off the so called "Maverick" come November

Here's a link where you can donate:

My Son Gabe's Obama Donation Link

My Son Gabe's Obama Donation Link

My Son Gabe's Obama Donation Link

From Politico

Signaling a new aggressiveness, aides to Sen. John McCain (D-Ariz.) said Saturday that he is going up immediately with an ad called "Troops" criticizing Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) for canceling plans to visit wounded troops at a U.S. military hospital in Germany.

The 30-second ad is to run during NBC's "Saturday Night Live" in Denver. Colorado is one of this election's most important swing states.

The spot is to begin Sunday in the Washington market and in Harrisburg, Pa., another key swing state.

An announcer says: "Barack Obama never held a single Senate hearing on Afghanistan. He hadn't been to Iraq in years. He voted against funding our troops. And now, he made time to go to the gym, but cancelled a visit with wounded troops. Seems the Pentagon wouldn't allow him to bring cameras. John McCain is always there for our troops. McCain. Country first."

Tonight nine little girls will gather at my house for a sleep-over (God help us) to celebrate my daughter's sixth birthday.

They will eat pizza and cake, watch Return to Witch Mountain and then play some version of Ten Little Indians to see how many of them will actually make it through the night.

But while I should be thinking of pillow fights and painted toenails, my mind is, instead, doing math:

Cross posted on Guaranteed Healthcare

No wonder we call this guy, McSame. How about McEvenWorse?

I spent the morning reviewing some video clips of McSame's appearance at the Lance Armstrong Cancer Summit.

It's a treasure trove. The entire event should inspire fear in the hearts of all Americans. The one I selected shows just how absolutely clueless this man is.

It's a huge blooper, could be another senior moment, I don't know:

But this time, he was alone, there was no Joe Lieberman to whisper in his ear. McSame doesn't have a clue about the economy, Iraq, Sunni, Shia, the Anbar Awakening--now add to the McSame catalogue of cluelessness, the collapse of the U.S. healthcare system.

In his own words.

Just McSame with a microphone.

Maybe it will be dismissed as yet another "in the tank" piece by the "librul media." Maybe it will be ignored by "hard-working Americans" because it was written by a black guy. But today's NY Times column, "Getting to Know You", by Bob Herbert feels like a long overdue breath of fresh air from the MSM to me.

But what we’ve learned over the years is that Mr. McCain is one of those guys who never has to pay much of a price for his missteps and foul-ups and bad behavior. Can you imagine the firestorm of outrage and criticism that would have descended on Senator Obama if he had made the kind of factual mistakes that John McCain has repeatedly made in this campaign?

I don't know how much or what kind and I won't be like the Captain and make up a story. The false e mail has already made Snopes as a fake internet rumor.  The Obama "fight the smears" has it up .here

The Captain is real, his wife is real, the information he put into his e mail was fake, The story has also made the Army Times.

Today's Rasmussen Tracking Poll:

The Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll for Saturday shows that the bounce is continuing for Barack Obama. The presumptive Democratic nominee attracts 46% of the vote while John McCain earns 40%. When "leaners" are included, it’s Obama 49% and McCain 43%. Just four days ago, the candidates were tied at 46% (with leaners). Obama is viewed favorably by 57% of voters, McCain by 55%

Link

And now Gallup:

Barack Obama has stretched his lead over John McCain among national registered voters to seven percentage points, 48% to 41%, in Gallup Poll Daily tracking conducted July 23-25.

Gallup Link

This interview is just such a breath of fresh air when compared to the usual political stuff.  Reading the whole article is fascinating but I think there are several points which will assure the concerned among Obama nation.