Here’s my take:

Dan Rather quit being a good reporter years before this case ever came up. He was a political hack, with a huge national following, who had degraded to a point where his liberal partisanship was obvious.

Now, I don’t mind political hacks. Sean Hannity is one. Keith Olbermann is one. Chris Mathews is one. That’s just a small list. But we’re not talking about them. We’re talking about reporters and reporters today can’t seem to grasp the concept of attempting to make thier stories unbiased. Nor do they seem to understand the difference between a reporter and a commentator. Even Chris Mathews recently said his job was to help ensure a successful Presidency for Barack Obama. Lord knows he helped get him elected. (Is Mathews a reporter or a commentator?)

So, it comes down to the focus of the individuals media job. David Gergen is expected to have an opinion and express it. Alan Colmes, Hannity’s partner, is also expected to have an opinion and express it. They are commentators. That’s what they do.

Dan Rather on the other hand, was a reporter/news caster. He can have an opinion but he is expected to keep opinion out of it. And he certainly isn’t supposed to use unvetted forged documents simply because it’s a silver bullet with which to wound his Republican foe.

Dan Rather screwed the pooch on that story and he was called to account for it. The price he had to pay was his job.

There is no reason to feel any pity for the man with tripe like saying it was just a simple mistake. Rather is too old a hand to have make a mistake like that. He knew better.

He lost his job. Big deal. It doesn’t make up for the hundreds of times he slanted his stories to be unfavorable to Republicans for over 20 years. Just because he didn’t use forged documents all those times doesn’t make it any less unprofessional.

Rather got what he deserved, and good riddence. The judge should dismiss the case.

These days the news media are filled with reports about influential Republicans breaking with President Bush and the Administration on big issues like the war in Iraq and immigration reform. The conventional wisdom among political pundits seems to be that this is a sign of Republican weakness and uncertainty, a cynical political calculation based on the President’s declining poll numbers and a Democratic resurgence in Congress. That’s a convenient explanation, but one that is far too simple and shortsighted.

This summer’s high stakes debates over Iraq, the war on terror, immigration and all the rest are really nothing new, and certainly not unhealthy. From our party’s founding in the turbulent years before the Civil War until today, independent thought and new ideas have been what Republicans have been all about. I am very proud to say that I and my fellow Republicans have never been comfortable marching in lockstep with any administration or ideology. Republicans have always come from a diverse mix of backgrounds and perspectives. We have often disagreed among ourselves on issues big and small. And over the years many of those disagreements have been far more fundamental and far reaching than anything we are seeing today.

Two generations ago as America emerged from the Second World War a dominant world power about to enter a long twilight struggle that would determine the future of freedom, the Republican party was home to political beliefs spanning a wide spectrum from very conservative, what some would call isolationist, all the way to what many today would consider moderately liberal. Robert Taft, Arthur Vandenberg and Nelson Rockefeller were all influential Republicans, even as they brought widely diverse backgrounds and sharply differing perspectives to the political debate. Their passionate disagreements, and the new ideas those disagreements, generated have defined over three generations of American political thought.

Vigorous discussion and hard fought debate are what Republican politics should be all about. The health of our party, indeed the health of our nation and the survival of freedom and democracy, depend on a constant stream of new ideas. New solutions for new problems. New ways of thinking about old issues. To worry that the Republican Party is losing its way or breaking apart because some of its most influential leaders happen to disagree with the current administration is to ignore the clear lessons of history.

One idea that does unite Republicans across the ideological spectrum is a faith in the wisdom of the people and a corresponding distrust of the idea that government, even a government led by Republicans, always knows best. Republicans from all points on the political compass should be pleased that influential party leaders like Richard Lugar, George Voinovich, and John Warner are raising questions about the Administration’s prosecution of the war in Iraq and the larger battle against global terrorism. Republicans should be pleased when conservative party leaders like Newt Gingrich are willing to question the President’s allegiance to bedrock conservative principles. Leaders in and out of government, representing many different ideological perspectives, should be praised for giving voice to the concerns of the people, even when others in the party may criticize them for breaking with the White House. That kind of outspoken political independence is what Republicans have always believed they were sent to Washington to represent.

The mission of my organization, GOPAC, is to find and develop the next generation of Republican leaders. Leaders at the state and local level who are comfortable with new ideas and the practical political skills to bring those ideas into the political debate. Leaders with the political courage to resist easy stereotypes and empty rhetoric. Republican leaders anxious to bridge the gap between ideology and action. Republican leaders just like those who have defined our party for more than a century.

Also looking to run for this position is Newt Gingrich, former Speaker of the House, and one of the smartest political players on the stage.

I like both of these guys and feel they would both do great work to bring back the Republican brand. I sincerely hope they can work out the details so one has a title and the other has a strategic advisory role. It would be the best of both worlds.

John Stuart Mill once said, “War is an ugly thing, but not the ugliest of things; the decayed and degraded state of moral and patriotic feeling which thinks nothing worth a war, is worse.” The moment we believe our freedoms inevitable, we cease to live in history and sour the soldier’s sacrifice. Our freedoms–purchased on the battlefield–are indeed “worthy of war.”

This is the time we honor our veterans for their sacrifices on our behalf. Take the time throughout the day to say “thank you” to any veterans you may meet. Write a letter to the editor. Hang the Flag at your house. Put together a care package and send it to the troops. Hire a vet. Make a contribution to a veterans organization. Say a prayer.

There are many ways to honor our veterans, and should not be limited to one day a year. It’s your choice. Many people fought and died so you could have a choice. Make one.

Thank you veterans. Today and every day.

Poor lost souls.

So I get an email the other day that says my XBox live membership is due to automatically renew in a month. Huh?!?! So I go online to the page for my account and what do you know there is no option to not automatically renew or to cancel. According to their FAQ to do that you need to call. Well here is the dilemma. Believe it or not I have internet access here but no phone access. It’s only every now and then that I get to a phone. So I fired off an email explaining my situation. I was very polite and expected some kind of help. Here is the reply I got.

Thank you for writing to Xbox Live. We are sorry to hear that you want to cancel your Xbox Live subscription. As much as I would like to help you over email, all cancellation problems are being addressed through our phone support line. We at email support line do not have the capabilities to pull up your account, since this issue has a degree of sensitivity. Be advised that by canceling your subscription, you will lose any remaining time on the service in addition to your gamer tag and game rankings.If you still want to cancel, please call our Xbox Phone Support. We may require personal information for verification which cannot be divulged over email. When you call, immediate action will be given to your inquiries or request.

My response

Did you even read my email? I am in Afghanistan! I DO NOT HAVE ANY MEANS OF USING A PHONE. If I can bank over the internet you can cancel my lowly little xbox live account over the internet. Thousands of businesses are capable of identifying me over the internet, I’m pretty sure Microsoft can.Your website will even let me add another credit card or change any other aspect of my membership but it won’t let me choose not to automaticly renew or cancel. Yea right, I’m sure that has to do with “personal information being passed over email.” While you may not have the ability to help me you need to forward this to someone who can. If my membership is renewed and I am charged for xbox live when I have no means of using it then I will never ever purchase another piece of Microsoft software again.

Their response

Thank you for contacting Microsoft online support for XBOX. I am (Name) and I will be helping you today with this issue. I apologize for the inconvenience. I understand that you are from Afghanistan and need to call Xbox Customer Support to cancel your account. You may call any of the numbers listed below that is nearest your region:

My response

Apparently you did not read my message either. I am not from Afghanistan. I am an American serviceman deployed to Afghanistan. I HAVE NO ACCESS TO A PHONE. DO NOT RENEW MY XBOX LIVE MEMBERSHIP!!!!!!!! I AM GETTING TIRED OF REPEATING MYSELF. This is all strangely reminiscent of the whole AOL cancellation debacle. You all have no security issues with me changing a credit card or any other sensitive aspect of my account online yet for me to not want to automatically renew is too sensitive to pass over email?!?! So, (Name) for the last time, pretty please with a cherry on top let me make myself perfectly clear, I WILL NEVER PURCHASE ANOTHER PIECE OF MICROSOFT ANYTHING IF MY XBOX LIVE MEMBERSHIP IS AUTOMATICALLY RENEWED!!!

What is wrong with people! So frustrating.

It reminds me of way back when the only way you could cancel your AOL membership was to call, but the numbers were 1) hard as hell to find, or 2) you were on terminal hold.

Obviously this guy can’t even make the call nor, if he could call, spend any time on hold. If there is anyone out there that can help him please click through to the link and do what you can.

Thanks.

Considering this is the first time Obama has spoken publicly since his speech on Tuesday night, it doesn’t bode well. Besides being untrue, it was a nasty thing to say. When you have to call a 86 year old former first lady to apologise then you’ve got a problem to begin with.

It’s a side of him he has been careful to hide thus far. Obama seems to have a need to denigrate other people and needs to grow up. And fast.

“We’ve been looking for one of our own kind to get elected, to represent,” he said. He was one of many to express this sentiment. He added: “I’m also excited to see so many young folks out here. We haven’t come out here for a concert or for any foolish reason — we’ve come out here to change the world!”

Darryl was one of the more enthusiastic people I spoke to last night. He reminded me right away of something Obama wrote in The Audacity of Hope:

“I am new enough on the national political scene that I serve as a blank screen on which people of vastly different political stripes project their own views. As such, I am bound to disappoint some, if not all, of them.”

I cannot say for sure whether the alleged newfound interest in politics of the nation’s youth is just a myth, as the exit polls appear to suggest. But there were many young people in Grant Park, and I thought to myself that over time these idealists will all hit the same wall of realism — the one that everyone in Washington hits at some point.

You wouldn’t know it from the reception he got last night — from the thousands of people who wept and screamed and milled about in the park for hours afterward — but Barack Obama is a mere man. Even worse, he is a politician. These folks will now learn that the hard way.

Even worse, as Freddoso points out in his book “The Case Against Barack Obama,” Obama is a Chicago politician. That’s the worst sort, as people will find out way too late, so stand by for profound disappointment on the part of his supporters. You can see the rest of Freddoso’s article here.

There will be time to disect this election in the days ahead. I still have serious concerns about Barack Obama, but for now, let us celebrate the historic nature of this election and the progress we have made in this country in race elections. That he could even have a chance, much less win, speaks volumes about the progress we have made.

This is not just a victory, it is a resounding victory.

Good luck to President Elect Obama in the days ahead. He will need it.

So, what do they focus on at the earliest opportunity?

Yup. The exit polls. Go figure.

Think I’ll head out and buy a book and come back when the real polls start rolling in. A biography of Ronald Reagan sounds pretty good right about now. Carter gave us Reagan. Carter gave us Reagan. Carter gave us Reagan.

Repeat as needed.

This is very entertaining. No, really!! It is!!

So here’s the background…

Barack Obama has been talking about his tax rates being lower than those that Ronald Reagan had, but, and here’s the thing, no one really knows which tax rates Obama is talking about. Now, this is not that unusual. People rarely ever know what Obama is talking about. He just goes on and on with nice soothing little sound bites and all the little liberal boys and girls swoon and moan lovingly, “Oh, isn’t he just wonderful,” or some such nonsense and then promptly faint from the sheer joy of hearing his voice.

Cavuto is not one of those people. He doesn’t swoon, nor is he the fainting kind. In this interview today Cavuto was trying to find out, from an Obama surrogate, just exactly which rates Obama was talking about.

He didn’t have much luck.

This is not surprising because it becomes abundantly clear as the interview progresses that Menendez hasn’t the foggiest notion of the difference between capital gains taxes and income tax rates.

This is a U.S. Senator.

And we wonder why Congress can’t accomplish anything that actually benefits the American people.