John H. McFadden "deconstructs" the guilt by association tactics being used to implicate Obama in his Reverend's radicalism.

Chuck Keller, himself a vet, writes from his own experience on the horrors of PTSD, a stark reminder that our Veterans' care programs are one of the many vital institutions to have suffered under the Bush administration.

Naturally, there's a lot of talk about what's behind our current economic crisis. Reader ThurmanHart thinks that much of it may boil down to "ill-advised and immoral tax cuts for the wealthy."

Akbar Jenkins discusses "the tragedy of the prison-industrial complex", an egregious situation that is constantly slipping from public view.

David Seaton looks at the ongoing Obama-Wright "scandal" and concludes, in part, that it is proof that "Obama has been brought along too fast." David's blog always makes for good reading, but this formulation gets under my skin. David writes just above, that Wright "speaks like someone of the left and America is a right wing country." So, the implication is that politicians should wait before seeking office until the cynicism that comes with experience pushes them far enough to the right of the spectrum to be successful in American politics. Sounds dismal to me - no way out of the gradual rightward shift. Thoughts?