Obama and Patriotism Bullies -- With Molly Ivins In Obama's Corner

I was one of Molly's close friend for almost 35 years. I miss her more than you can imagine. Molly was a journalist who would not have endorsed a presidential candidate. Molly would have done her job and researched the candidates' records, contributors and connections. She was furious about Hillary's vote on the war and called her on it in the column you referenced. Molly died at the end of January 2007 before Obama was well known. She never mentioned him to me. Molly battled cancer from 1999 until her death. Others in her family have cancer. We discussed and debated candidates positions on many issues,especially health care, and not just the war. I was with Jim Hightower and Molly at the Rolling Thunder Tour against the war in Austin. Jesse Jackson, Jr. spoke. No one mentioned Obama. I live 15 miles from Crawford, Texas and went with anti-war friends to Camp Casey in 2005 and 2006. Rev. Al Sharpton was there so was Rev. Lennox Lomax, but not Obama. In our last conversation,Molly said that we should do everything to end this war. She did not say Barack Obama's name. Whoever the Democratic nominee is in 2008, Molly Ivins was NOT in their corner. Don't tarnish my friend's memory by saying she was. PS I'm an African American female who supports Hillary Clinton. Her health care plan includes me.

Molly was one of those Texans who made me proud to be one of them. Thanks for your integrity, Molly. You were one of a kind.

I miss her every day. I would trust her analysis of this now seemingly endless Democratic campaign more than anyone's.
We have to try to honor her combination of generosity of human spirit and an intolerance for cant and political weasling.
Colleen Clark
Cambridge, MA

In retrospect you could see the threads leading to it, and the lack of a matching sounding board (like the internet) kept me from knowing or understanding many events, and thinking I was alone in insights that much that was said and agreed about seemed utterly illogical.

But despite all that the "Not in Kansas" "Through the looking glass" moment came when Bush declared himself winning an election that was not at all clear from anywhere at that time, and only got murkier. The rest was the sort of thing cheap fiction was accused of; sudden twists pulled out of the air, the entire nation rushing off in ways no sane screenwriter would propose, Orwellian speeches where ragtag right wing religious fanatic misfits suddenly become Hitler's army (of liberals no less), and level 5 bio-containment is achieved with string tied brown canvas in the desert sun.

But the one place of reality that allowed me to realize that it was not my sanity that had gone screaming off the deep end, was the Internet (and to a great extant Buzzflash).

I knew well enough that simple awareness of the criminal insanity of the Gang Of Pirates spoke and speaks not at all of the actual beliefs and policy preferences of those so aware. But I also knew that such things do not matter any more than arguing about the kind and quality of the interior decorations of a house poised on a cliff that waves are washing away.

I also remember the GOP campaign of attacks that pretended to be Dean supporters attacking Gephart and Gephart supporters attacking Dean, dragging both men and their supporters into responding and wrecking both campaigns before they got out of Iowa. Would they do this again, and more skillfully than before?? You Betcha!!!

Neither Obama or Clinton would be my preference, but I cannot be the one who decides that. I can however speak out against the provocateurs and those who would allow them to set the tone like they did between Dean and Gephart. In the end it does not matter if the fanatic calling for the lowest mindedness is for real or a GOP plant, following an honorable path takes out both problems.

Obama has the votes, he has responded better than could be hoped to the Wright "issue", and needs only to continue on the high road to wrap it up, using the attacks to make them "Old News" by the time Republicans start in on him openly.

It would do Obama well to denounce any such attacks as from Republican subversives, as indeed many are, with a "There you go again" response to any, no matter if they are From GOP, Hillary, or the Media. Like the "Bombs in the Towers", it does not matter who the conspirators are (if any) but only the results, and that is where the effort needs to be.

No matter what Democrat wins, massive effort needs to be put out to get them to do the right thing, but McCain winning will make the loss nearly irretrievable. Any action that advances the GOP cause hurts us all, it does not matter if they are GOP or dupes of the GOP. Each of us can only make sure it is not ourself.

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If the Gang Of Pirates think that the only good Democrat is a dead Democrat, only a fool would think it bipartisan to accommodate them by acting the part.

When I saw Obama say that he thought Rev. Wright was a legitimate campaign topic my blood ran cold. Somebody has gotten to him with some sort of believable threat. He's conceded.

Molly Ivins was a Patriot, someone who loved her country enough to point out when and where we were going terribly wrong. She tried to warn all Americans about BushCo, and quite a few listened, but her fellow Texan Jim Baker was already working for the Saudis to get THEIR candidate installed even if he was never elected. Time for all of us to take a stand with the spirit of Molly Ivins in our hearts: stand up to the GOP hate machine and the GOP heroine Hillary Clinton. You'd think that the endorsement of creatures like Bill Krystol, Richard Mellon Scaife and Pat Buchanan would be enough to wake Dems up to the toxic nature of Clinton's campaign. Why hasn't Clinton been asked to "denounce and reject" these endorsements?!? Why hasn't the MSM/CCCP exposed her religious ties to the Family/Fellowship cult? Will it take a "cultural revolution" to really change this despicable government?

alibe50 - better watch your mouth saying that Miss Molly would support Hillary. One of Miss Molly's last columns was entitled, "I will not support Hillary Clinton for president." And she meant it! http://www.freepress.org/columns/display/1/2006/1304 So better watch who you call insane. She told us in black and white print across the nation who she would NOT vote for - and that was Hillary Clinton.

I just can't believe you have to resort to calling upon Molly to buck up your insane position on Obama. Maybe Molly wasn't a gung ho Hillary supporter, but I have to believe she would pick Hillary over Hope and Change. But I would never presume to tell you for certain how Molly Ivins would voted. But, whatever she would have said would have been valuable.