Election: Hillary Clinton is Tracy Flick

So brilliant, so funny, so on the nose on so many levels...

Radical Love Gets a Holiday - New York Times

Radical Love Gets a Holiday - New York Times

An interesting, thoughtful perspective on MLK from the very smart, very funny frequent NPR contributor Sarah Vowell:

"Whoever wins the presidential election this year will be a Christian. (Unless of course it’s that one guy who is a member of a Muslim sleeper cell. Just when you think the electoral process couldn’t get any more stupid....) So the rest of us might as well suck it up and see if we can pick the Christian who is, if incapable of loving his or her enemies, the one who seems least likely to drum up a bunch of extra, new enemies to hate."

The hardball master has taught Hillary well | Andrew Sullivan - Times Online

One of my favorite conservative writers, Andrew Sullivan, nails the thinking behind the Clinton camp's Machiavellian by way of Karl Rove political calculations and machinations of the past two weeks:

The hardball master has taught Hillary well Andrew Sullivan - Times Online: "The Chicago columnist Don Rose explained the logic clearly enough: “They’re not really racists, they just want to stress that Obama hasn’t really transcended race and that a person of colour may not be electable. Think about it, folks. Over and over again.”

The hardball tactics of Rove have defined American political life for a long time. The Clintons have now shown they have learnt from the master. The question for the Democrats is whether they want a candidate who can play the Rove game as cynically and as brutally as the Republicans. Or whether they want a new start and a new politics. That’s what is at stake now in the Democratic race. And one side has shown its true colours."

Weddings - New York Times

I don't usually blog about wedding stories, but this is a great unexpected love story and a lovely perspective on recognizing love:

"...They met on whirlwind encounters in 14 countries, and on one of those trips, they bought her engagement ring in Edinburgh.

They were married on Dec. 29 by the Rev. Glen Robyne, a United Methodist minister and Mr. Robinson’s nephew, at the Old Spanish Monastery in North Miami Beach. The nondenominational service had American Indian touches and also included a friend reading a Portuguese poem and Mr. Robinson’s oldest son, Lawrence, reading a French poem.

Several guests said that they had come halfway around the world to witness the wedding of Ms. Thompson, who had an explanation for why she finally said yes.

“When he looks into my eyes,” she said, “there is adoration there that makes me feel wonderful about me. That’s what you should really look for in someone. Because if you feel wonderful about yourself, you can do things.”"

Hillary, Barack, Experience - New York Times

Hillary, Barack, Experience - New York Times: "Mrs. Clinton’s strength is her mastery of the details of domestic and foreign policy, unrivaled among the candidates; she speaks fluently about what to do in Pakistan, Iraq, Darfur. Mr. Obama’s strength is his vision and charisma and the possibility that his election would heal divisions at home and around the world. John Edwards’s strength is his common touch and his leadership among the candidates in establishing detailed positions on health care, poverty and foreign aid.
Those are the meaningful distinctions in the Democratic field, not Mrs. Clinton’s spurious claim to “35 years of experience.”"