Politics: Calpundit for weeks was all in the "Bush went AWOL" story and suddenly he says, "oh well, didn't really find anything" ... so what exactly does this tell voters? Aside from the suspicion some naturally have for the President, they might very well say "is this the best they can do?" Oh, it made the President look bad given he went into "cover up" and "what me bad?" mode, but for those not naturally disgusted with this typical tendency of his, I don't know if it added much. [Yes, I would add the caveat, "so far."] He did after all serve honorably for four years and is not alone in not wanting to dwell on questionable things from long ago. And, once you open that door, who knows what will come in when the shoe is eventually on the other foot? Anyway, given all the smoke, there really needed to be more of a fire.

I discuss the CA Presidential Debate here, while this adds a bit about the first twenty minutes or so that I missed (and arguably had Edwards' best moments). Suffice to say, Edwards didn't do that well , Kucinich was annoying, Sharpton mostly a sideshow, and Kerry had his moments. His worst in my view was a clear statement that he had "no regret" for his vote, which is ridiculous given what happened. Kerry continues to live in this fantasy world in which he can vote on things because the power given could be use wisely and when it is not, those who voted on them are not at fault. This suggests why we need a Democrat in the White House, I guess. Anyway, Sen. Kerry will be happy to know that I won't "regret" my vote next Tuesday either.

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Other Stuff: The "ricin recipe online" myth ... I'm thinking of waiting until Good Friday to watch The Passion of The Christ, though you can read some of my views on the movie here and here. Suffice to say I think there has been too much hyperbole on the subject and I respect Gibson's own passion. Reading the source material (especially Mt. 26-27) is also helpful. ... Rush Limbaugh is on record worrying about censorship on radio, after Howard Stern was the latest target of the "naughty police." See also, here.