Brits, Learn to Eat Your Steak With a Spoon

So I was watching BBC America's version of BBC World News this evening, and they had an item about how the British government is going to crack down on violent crimes by... enforcing a ban on carrying knives.

Prime Minister Gordon Brown: "It is our intention that if you carry a knife you will be caught; if you carry a knife, you will be prosecuted; and if you carry a knife, you will be punished."

The Tories in opposition say even this is too soft, and wants long prison sentences for the crime of carrying a knife.

Articles here, here, here, and here detail things.

Now, I grant you this: over the past several years, the BBC says, violent crime in general and "knife crime" in specific have gone down. (Nonviolent crimes like burglary and home invasion skyrocketed after the nationwide handgun ban, and have stayed high.) I personally don't believe that this is directly caused by the handgun ban, though- but I admit that, presuming the BBC's reporting is accurate, violent crime is decreasing.

That said: Brits, the reason you've got a bunch of shocking stories about stabbings is that you've succeeded in taking guns away from your people. Taking away weapons is not going to stop those who want to kill. What it does do is make it harder for people to defend themselves.

If the following quote is credible, though, maybe the British government and police don't want people defending themselves when attacked anyway:

Karyn McCluskey, head of Strathclyde's Violence Reduction Unit, said knife crime was endemic and dated back to the "razor gangs" of the 1920s.

She said: "People give all sorts of reasons why they carry knives, including protecting themselves. But a knife is not a weapon of defence, it's a weapon of offence."

Well, guess what- there is no such thing as a purely defensive weapon. If a thing cannot be used offensively, IT'S NOT A WEAPON.

And you know what else? A knife happens to be a useful tool. Guns, I admit, are good for precious little aside from punching holes in things. Knives, on the other hand, can be used to cut, to clean, to trim, to pry, to whittle, to plane, to shave... and all of these things knives can do with much more precision or regularity than guns generally demonstrate in the hole-punching department.

There are many perfectly legal and socially acceptable reasons to carry a knife. Normally self-defense wouldn't be one of them- a knife is vastly, vastly inferior to a gun for self-defense. In a country where guns are almost completely illegal, though, a knife is about as good a second-best as is available- definitely better than pepper spray, and astronomically better than "cooperate with your attacker and give him what he wants."

But apparently PM Gordon Brown wants the useful pocket knife to be good for two to ten years in the pen:

"We will continue to make absolutely clear that carrying a knife is unacceptable in our society," he added.

Don't anyone tell him about the pen being mightier than the sword: then the Brits will outlaw the Bic and mandate that anyone who writes in anything other than pencil must be locked up for the good of society.

I swear, if it weren't for Jeremy Clarkson and the Pythons, I'd have no desire to ever visit England at all...

Open Letter to Barack Obama

Mr. Obama;

I am currently a man without a party, having got sick and tired of the willful stupidity of the Libertarian Party and holding both the Democratic and Republican parties in thorough contempt. I was relieved to see your rhetoric holding that there were limits to what government could do and your promises to fight the excesses of the current executive office holder and restore constitutional separation of powers.

I told friends and neighbors, most of whom disagreed strongly with me, that this year there was indeed a lesser evil for a change among the big two parties, and that you were he.

I was wrong.

Today you voted to give George W. Bush unlimited wiretap powers to spy on the communications of all Americans without warrant- without even suspicion. You voted to essentially take the FISA court, already a rubber stamp for executive power, out of the process entirely. Worst of all, you voted to grant immunity to telecom corporations for aiding George W. Bush in spying on Americans before this authority was given to him by Congress- aiding and abetting, in other words, in the commission of a felony.

By this vote, you have demonstrated the following:

* Large wealthy corporations are not subject to the same laws that the common people are, and thus may do things with impunity that would lead to imprisonment for the rest of us.

* You believe in unlimited executive power, and oppose executive accountability for crimes committed and admitted.

* Your word, previously given to not merely oppose but filibuster this measure, is worthless, and you cannot be trusted any more than the rest of your corrupt and cowardly party.

It is possible, indeed probable, that I will vote for you in November, despite this. The danger of a new war with Iran and a permanent occupation of Iraq are too important to allow Republicans to retain the White House, under any circumstances. I have little faith in Bob Barr and no faith in the party that nominated him, and I cannot stomach the theocratic views of the Constitution Party or the communist views of the Green Party.

But with this vote to gut the Fourth Amendment you have forfeited my active support. I have contributed only a tiny amount, to be sure... but you will not get another dime from me. Nor will you get my support as a volunteer or campaigner.

Henceforth, Mr. Obama, I am done with you, unless in the months that come you either admit that today's vote was an error on your part and apologize to the American people, or else you call for the criminal prosecution of those in the telecom corporations who cooperated with George W. Bush... and call, in turn, for either Bush's impeachment while in office or his criminal prosecution once he leaves office. Only by one or the other of these things- and preferably both- will you give me any reason to believe that you can be trusted to match your campaign rhetoric with your action in office.

In the meantime, Mr. Obama, I intend to treat you as I do most members of both the Democratic and Republican parties- as a generic politician who will say and do anything for the sake of advancing personal ambition.

Until you rethink your decision to sacrifice your principles for the sake of a "compromise" that gained you nothing, I bid you good day and goodbye.

Kris Overstreet
former Obama supporter

Democrats Cave to Evil... Again.

The Wall Street Journal reports a FISA compromise has been reached...

... giving Bush the unlimited immunity for telcoms he's demanded all along.

And making his warrantless wiretap powers permanent.

I've said it before, I'll say it again: the Republicans are the Party of Evil, and the Democrats are the Party of Caving In to Evil, or Complicity in Evil if you prefer.

This is the main drawback of the "two party, big tent" system: you get people supposedly in the same political party, as with the Democrats (liberals vs. "blue dog"), who believe in radically different things ("blue dog" Dems are essentially Republicans under a different label). People who vote for that party expecting one thing (opposition to an imperial president, an end to war) get another thing entirely.

I'd like to see the two big parties permanently split- the GOP into big-business, evangelist/theocratic, and Goldwater-ites, the Dems into liberal, moderate, and blue-dog- but I know it's not going to happen... because, above all else, both big parties worship the same thing- raw, unrestrained power.

Texas GOP Embarrasses Us All, Plus State Poll Update

First, a button which should have got the vendor thrown bodily out of the Texas GOP convention this past weekend, but apparently didn't:

Click here for open racism.

According to the above, the button was for sale at a booth run by these guys. They don't have that button in their listings, but they have others which are real *cough* winners.

This is right up there with the Obama sock monkey, made in Utah.

Aside from that comparison, words fail me- except that I hope every single educated white person and every minority group in Texas gets to know about that button- and votes on that knowledge come November.

On to the national level, FiveThirtyEight has updated its estimates and polling averages in the past twelve days since I first broke down the states into Solid, Wobbly, and Leaning/Tossup. Looking at the numbers, there have been some substantial shifts in 538's mathematical regression model, which forms the baseline for their predictions. These shifts, based on the recent national bump for Obama from getting the Democratic nomination, uniformly favors Obama. I'm going to give some weight to recent polling, though, to counterbalance bias at 538 if it exists, to hold states out of Solid status if there's any doubt.

SOLID --> WOBBLY - Well, no. Once I call a state Solid, I don't give a damn about it anymore; there's no way the vote is going to shift enough for it not to go for that person. It might end up closer than 10% come the election, but it's going to stay in that column barring an electoral earthquake. Forget it.

WOBBLY --> SOLID - Massachusetts goes Solid to Obama, with the two most recent polls showing him up over 10% (and the most recent over 20%)

WOBBLY --> LEAN/TOSSUP - Florida goes from Wobbly for McCain to Leaning McCain; North Carolina goes from Wobbly for McCain to Leaning McCain

LEAN/TOSSUP --> WOBBLY OBAMA - Colorado.

SHIFTS WITHIN LEAN/TOSSUP - Indiana and Missouri go from Lean McCain to Tossup. Virginia goes from leaning McCain to Lean Obama. New Hampshire and Ohio go from Tossup to Lean Obama.

So, here's my numbers:

SOLID OBAMA (12/51) - 157 EV
WOBBLY OBAMA (7/51) - 59 EV

SOLID McCAIN (10/51) - 69 EV
WOBBLY McCAIN (10/51) - 91 EV

LEAN/TOSSUP (12/51) - 161 EV

On the 6th my estimate of solid + wobbly was Obama 214, McCain 202- pretty close. The above shifts change that to Obama 216, McCain 160- not so much a gain for Obama as weakness on McCain's part.

We'll keep watching the polls...

Trans Texas Corridor- Minor Victory

Good news: the Texas Department of Transportation has nixed their plan to build the I-69 Trans Texas Corridor as an entirely new highway, grabbing millions of acres of new land to bypass virtually everyplace.

Bad news: the plan to make I-69 part of the Trans Texas Corridor still stands- which means that US 59 will be expanded to the Goliath proportions of the 400-yard-wide Trans Texas Corridor standards for most of its rural length. Local businesses near the existing US 59 lanes will be destroyed or bypassed for the toll incarnation of I-69, which will have businesses owned and operated by the same private corporations that operate the toll road itself.

In short, the Trans Texas Corridor Project is still alive; the beast has not yet been slain.

TxDOT promises that existing lanes will not be made into toll lanes on US 59. This, of course, presumes that existing lanes won't be torn up or shut down for various reasons.

Granted, Rick Perry is having trouble holding even his loyal Republicans in line on this issue. My Republican State Senator, Robert Nichols, was elected without any opposition whatever- but he supported the moratorium on toll road construction currently in place, and he seems favorable to killing TTC off completely.

Still, it's all the more important to elect Democrats to the Texas state legislature- especially since the Republicans hold only a five seat majority in the House at present. A flip of three seats would be enough to turn the House Democratic, which in turn would spell doom for the TTC and for most long-distance toll projects in the state.

Good Lord, let it happen...

Vote on Impeaching Bush Tomorrow...

Dennis Kucinich yesterday introduced a resolution to impeach George Walker Bush, standing for about five hours to read his entire 62-page resolution aloud into the congressional record.

Tonight the same resolution is being read aloud a second time, in order that the bill may be voted on tomorrow.

It's going to go to the House Judiciary Committee to die, the same as Kucinich's bill to impeach Richard Cheney. Nancy Pelosi has not moved on her position of no impeachment now or ever. As of this typing Kucinich has only one co-sponsor- Richard Wexler of Florida- and, aside from MSNBC, no mass media coverage to speak of.

To my mind, of course, this is a demonstration of the criminality of the current Democratic leadership, acquiescing yet again to an imperial presidency they hope to inherit. That's not as important in my view, though, as the thirty-five- count them, THIRTY-FIVE- articles of impeachment Kucinich proposes. Some are valid, some are interesting... and some are stretching the definition of high crimes and misdemeanors so far as to discredit the whole enterprise and make Kucinich look like more of a loon than usual. (Remember, when he was a Presidential candidate, one of his campaign planks was to use the power of the federal government to "encourage adoption of the vegan lifestyle.")

Anyway, here's a PDF with the full articles listed. I'm going to list them here by title and describe them in one of four ways: Fair Cop (no reason why Democrats shouldn't vote for it), Complicit (Democrats supported it), Clinton-bait (involves the same kind of crimes Democrats voted NOT to impeach Bill Clinton for), Not a Crime (self-explanatory), and Just Plain Nuts (ditto).

Oh- and for "Democrats", read "Democratic members of the House of Representatives."

I. Creating a Secret Propaganda Campaign to Manufacture a False Case for War Against Iraq. Fair Cop. Kucinich began his list with a very poor title. The meat of his case is not that Bush misled people about Iraq- which, although outrageous, is at best Clinton-bait- but that Bush spent taxpayer dollars to spread the lie and to persuade the American people that we were in imminent danger of being nuked by Iraq. The title should have been, "Misuse of Taxpayer Dollars for Partisan Purpose, To Wit a Propaganda Campaign to Manufacture a False Case for War Against Iraq." That said, the actual meat of the article of impeachment holds up.

II. Falsely, Systematically, and with Criminal Intent Conflating the Attacks of September 11, 2001, With Misrepresentation of Iraq as a Security Threat as Part of Fraudulent Justification for a War of Aggression. Clinton-bait. This article, on the other hand, is simply about Bush lying, plain and simple. The Clinton impeachment made it plain that the majority of Democrats still in office today believe lying, even under oath as a witness in court, is not an impeachable offense. Kucinich does an excellent job of establishing that Bush did, indeed, deliberately lie to the American people, but Democrats can't vote yes on this now without admitting that they should have voted yes then.

III. Misleading the American People and Members of Congress to Believe Iraq Possessed Weapons of Mass Destruction, to Manufacture a False Case for War. Clinton-bait. Ditto.

IV. Misleading the American People and Members of Congress to Believe Iraq Posed an Imminent Threat to the United States. Clinton-bait. Ditto.

V. Illegally Misspending Funds to Secretly Begin a War of Aggression. Complicit. Democrats failed to even make the effort to exercise Congressional oversight over military spending at the time, and indeed voted supplementary funds prior to the war to pay for the military buildup prior to the invasion. No Democrat can vote for this without essentially convicting themselves for the same crime.

VI. Invading Iraq in Violation of the Requirements of HJRes114. Not a Crime. Despite Kucinich's efforts to prove the contrary, HJRes114 was essentially a blank check for Bush to invade whenever he saw fit- the bill had no enforcement mechanism should Bush abuse it, in any case. Indeed, in my view anyone and everyone who voted for HJRes114 should be impeached for giving Bush (or ANYBODY) the power to use offensive military force without a declaration of war... but, in essence, HJRes114 acted as a war declaration for all legal purposes.

VII. Invading Iraq Absent a Declaration of War. Complicit. See above.

VIII. Invading Iraq, A Sovereign Nation, in Violation of the UN Charter. Not a Crime. The Constitution levies no penalty on the American government in general, or any officer within it, for violating a treaty. Indeed, the precedent for violating treaties goes back to George Washington himself, who violated our Treaty of Alliance with France by not declaring war against Great Britain during the French Revolution.

IX. Failing to Provide Troops With Body Armor and Vehicle Armor. Not a Crime. Negligence is not a crime in politics- otherwise every Democrat who voted against impeaching Cheney would be guilty as charged.

X. Falsifying Accounts of US Troop Deaths and Injuries for Political Purposes. Just Plain Nuts. Not only is this not a crime, it's so commonplace throughout history that it's expected. What's more, Kucinich only gives the two most famous examples- Jessica Lynch and Pat Tillman- as if there were no other cases of White House propagandizing using the dead and wounded- or hiding them, as the case may be. More to the point, in wartime- regardless of whether or not the war is just- the people want heroes. To quote the reporter in The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, "When you're given a choice between truth and legend, print the legend."

XI. Establishment of Permanent U.S. Military Bases in Iraq. Just Plain Nuts. Would have been Not a Crime, except that the specific example Kucinich gives hasn't happened yet- it's still in negotiation with the Iraqi occupation government, which isn't having any of it.

XII. Initiating a War Against Iraq for Control of That Nation's Natural Resources. Just Plain Nuts, because motivation for the war is essentially unprovable.

XIIII. Creating a Secret Task Force to Develop Energy and Military Policies With Respect to Iraq and Other Countries. Not a Crime, or if it were every Congressperson who ever told staffers to find facts to back their political positions would also be guilty.

XIV. Misprision of a Felony, Misuse and Exposure of Classified Information And Obstruction of Justice in the Matter of Valerie Plame Wilson, Clandestine Agent of the Central Intelligence Agency. Fair Cop- despite Cheney's claims that the President and Vice President can declassify information at will without consequences, oversight, or due process of law.

XV. Providing Immunity from Prosecution for Criminal Contractors in Iraq. Not a Crime. The contractors in question were acting as de facto officers of the American government, and thus entitled to the sovereign immunity that also applies to, for instance, on-duty cops and military. The officers should have been fired and the contract cancelled immediately and Blackwater blacklisted- but Bush's State Department had every right under the law to give those mercenaries immunity.

XVI. Reckless Misspending and Waste of U.S. Tax Dollars in Connection With Iraq and US Contractors. Fair Cop- but another example of a very poorly titled article. In the text itself, Kucinich is essentially accusing Bush and his cronies of graft- giving plum contracts to their corporate buddies, especially Haliburton. "Misspending" is not only a matter of opinion- by most people's opinion, it's chronic in Washington, and incurable. "Graft and corruption in office" would be both more accurate and more compelling.

XVII. Illegal Detention: Detaining Indefinitely And Without Charge Persons Both U.S. Citizens and Foreign Captives. Complicit. Over sixty Democrats voted for the Military Commissions Act of 2006, which authorized Bush to define what torture is and isn't, to prevent prosecution of any government officer or agent for torture, and to hold people indefinitely without benefit of habeas corpus. The Democrats who voted for that won't vote to declare it a crime now.

XVIII. Torture: Secretly Authorizing, and Encouraging the Use of Torture Against Captives in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Other Places, as a Matter of Official Policy. Complicit. See above- and damn those Democrats for giving up the moral high ground for the sake of re-election.

XIX. Rendition: Kidnapping People and Taking Them Against Their Will to "Black Sites" Located in Other Nations, Including Nations Known to Practice Torture. Fair Cop- not even the Military Commissions Act authorized this, and there's no excuse whatever for not voting to impeach on this one.

XX. Imprisoning Children. Fair Cop- but not likely to get far, since quite a few of those children were caught carrying rifles or explosives, if not actively using them against American troops.

XXI. Misleading Congress and the American People About Threats from Iran, and Supporting Terrorist Organizations Within Iran, With the Goal of Overthrowing the Iranian Government. Clinton-bait, at least for the parts involving lying to the American people. The text of the article itself comes very close to Just Plain Nuts for citing a bunch of examples of Bush supposedly fighting a proxy war against Iran in secret with only single, alternative-media sources. Conspiracy theorists use similar tactics- you don't want your case for impeachment to sound like theirs if you want it to go anywhere.

XXII. Creating Secret Laws. Sadly, Complicit. Congress, including Democrats, gave Bush the power to keep all these things secret, most recently in its law giving him temporary authority to wiretap without warrants on anyone he saw fit to eavesdrop upon. (Thankfully, efforts to make that authority permanent have failed.) Before Democrats can impeach anyone on this, they must begin by stripping the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act courts of their secrecy.

XXIII. Violation of the Posse Comitatus Act. Fair Cop- and too few people understand just why we have the Posse Comitatus Act in the first place. Hint: we don't want a permanent military establishment to get too powerful...

XXIV. Spying on American Citizens, Without a Court-Ordered Warrant, in Violation of the Law and the Fourth Amendment. Complicit- see my comments on Article XXII.

XXV. Directing Telecommunications Companies to Create an Illegal and Unconstitutional Database of the Private Telephone Numbers and Emails of American Citizens. Technically Fair Cop, but will probably be treated by Kucinich's fellow Democrats as Complicit; see again my comments on Article XXII.

XXVI. Announcing the Intent to Violate Laws with Signing Statements. Not a Crime. Saying, "I'm going to rob a bank," is not a crime; the person has to actually rob a bank. Kucinich would have done MUCH better to give examples where Bush had actually violated laws passed by Congress after issuing a signing statement- but Kucinich didn't do that.

XXVII. Failing to Comply with Congressional Subpoenas and Instructing Former Employees Not to Comply. Fair Cop- and John Conyers has been a coward for not enforcing those subpoenas with Congress's inherent powers. If all else failed, Congress could create a new law enforcement agency separate from the executive branch for the sole purpose of enforcing subpoenas and other legal actions against the executive branch. Based on experience, that wouldn't be a bad idea in general...

XXVIII. Tampering with Free and Fair Elections, Corruption of the Administration of Justice. Fair cop- clear examples of abuse of power.

XXIX. Conspiracy to Violate the Voting Rights Act of 1965. There's a LOT in this one article, but by and large it falls under Just Plain Nuts- in that there's no way to prove that Bush was behind all of it. The examples all point to other people's conduct, particularly Ken Blackwell, a state official of Ohio and not legally under Bush's authority at all. It's conspiracy theory, and even if it's true it's going to discredit the rest of the articles.

XXX. Misleading Congress and the American People in an Attempt to Destroy Medicare. Not a Crime. This article is an attempt to impeach Bush for being a politician and trying to get Medicare Part D passed by usual tactics- nothing more.

XXXI. Katrina: Failure to Plan for the Predicted Disaster of Hurricane Katrina, Failure to Respond to a Civil Emergency. Not a Crime. See comments on Article IX.

XXXII. Misleading Congress and the American People, Systematically Undermining Efforts to Address Global Climate Change. Clinton-bait, and probably Not a Crime- politics again.

XXXIII. Repeatedly Ignored and Failed to Respond to High Level Intelligence Warnings of Planned Terrorist Attacks in the US, Prior to 911. Not a Crime. See again comments on Article IX.

XXXIV. Obstruction of the Investigation into the Attacks of September 11, 2001. I'm uncertain about this one, but based on Kucinich's explanation I have to lean towards Not a Crime. Bush was not subpoenaed at the time, so you can't get him on that. In all other ways, he played the political game, fulfilling the bare letter of the law while utterly violating the spirit- but for legal purposes, of course, that's good enough.

XXXV. Endangering the Health of 911 First Responders. Not a Crime, unless you believe that the federal government is obliged to guarantee good health to all people. The worst Bush can be proven to have done regarding air quality at the World Trade Center cleanup site is negligence- and, again, negligence is very seldom a crime.

So- out of thirty-five articles, in my opinion only nine have a hope in hell of surviving, even if John Conyers weren't going to smother this as soon as it gets to his Judicial Committee. The bulk of Democrats would vote against the others even if Nancy Pelosi weren't dedicated to blocking impeachment- in some cases because the acts are not criminal, in others because they don't want to face up to their own crimes.

One thing gets me, though: Kucinich failed to name the one definitely, unequivocally criminal thing Bush has not only done but confessed to: the destruction of nearly two years' worth of White House emails, technically government records which are supposed to be preserved for posterity. Kucinich says nothing about those records in his articles- and I, for one, would have that article pretty damn prominent in the list. It's the only one that no investigation would be required to prove- we have the confession on tape, when Bush admitted as much to the world press.

I approve of Kucinich's goals- Bush and his policies must be repudiated beyond all possible doubt- but his tactics leave very, very much to be desired.

Clinton: Did We All Watch the Same Speech?

That was my reaction. What I heard when I watched her speech wasn't the overwhelmingly gracious and eloquent speech everyone, but everyone, in the media says she gave. What I heard was a deliberate play to feminism, a very subtle twist of the knife in Obama, and the bare minimum endorsement required by the pressure her Congressional supporters were putting on her.

But I'm biased. I loathe both the Clintons. I believe they are driven by absolutely nothing more than a lust for power, and are willing to say and do anything if it will get them power. I have not forgotten, as the talking heads already have, that the Clintons wanted to take the fight on to the convention, and are only conceding now because their superdelegates are deserting them now that the primary season is over. I have not forgotten that the Clintons have done everything they could to destroy Obama's general election chances so that they could make the argument that Hillary is "more electable." I'm biased and angry, and thus liable to put the worst reading on a speech- especially when my listening comprehension is much lower than my reading comprehension.

What follows is the full transcript of the speech, by the New York Times and copied in full here for those who can't get past the NYT's "pay us now" system whenever it kicks in. Applause and other audience reaction edited out. I'm going to re-read and see if what I thought I heard still applies. My comments interspersed.

Thank you very, very much. Well, this isn't exactly the party I'd planned, but I sure like the company.

And I want to start today by saying how grateful I am to all of you, to everyone who poured your hearts and your hopes into this campaign, who drove for miles and lined the streets waving homemade signs, who scrimped and saved to raise money, who knocked on doors and made calls, who talked, sometimes argued with your friends and neighbors, who e-mailed and contributed online, who invested so much in our common enterprise, to the moms and dads who came to our events, who lifted their little girls and little boys on their shoulders and whispered in their ears, "See, you can be anything you want to be."

To the young people like 13-year-old Anne Riddell (ph) from Mayfield, Ohio, who had been saving for two years to go to Disney World and decided to use her savings instead to travel to Pennsylvania with her mom and volunteer there, as well.

To the veterans, to the childhood friends, to New Yorkers and Arkansans who traveled across the country, telling anyone who would listen why you supported me.

And to all of those women in their 80s and their 90s born before women could vote, who cast their votes for our campaign.

I've told you before about Florence Stein (ph) of South Dakota who was 88 years old and insisted that her daughter bring an absentee ballot to her hospice bedside. Her daughter and a friend put an American flag behind her bed and helped her fill out the ballot. She passed away soon after and, under state law, her ballot didn't count, but her daughter later told a reporter, "My dad's an ornery, old cowboy, and he didn't like it when he heard Mom's vote wouldn't be counted. I don't think he had voted in 20 years, but he voted in place of my mom."

So to all those who voted for me and to whom I pledged my utmost, my commitment to you and to the progress we seek is unyielding. You have inspired and touched me with the stories of the joys and sorrows that make up the fabric of our lives. And you have humbled me with your commitment to our country. Eighteen million of you, from all walks of life, women and men, young and old, Latino and Asian, African- American and Caucasian, rich, poor, and middle-class, gay and straight, you have stood with me.

And I will continue to stand strong with you every time, every place, in every way that I can. The dreams we share are worth fighting for.

Remember, we fought for the single mom with the young daughter, juggling work and school, who told me, "I'm doing it all to better myself for her."

We fought for the woman who grabbed my hand and asked me, "What are you going to do to make sure I have health care?" and began to cry, because even though she works three jobs, she can't afford insurance.

We fought for the young man in the Marine Corps t-shirt who waited months for medical care and said, "Take care of my buddies over there, and then will you please take care of me?"

We fought for all those who've lost jobs and health care, who can't afford gas or groceries or college, who have felt invisible to their president these last seven years.

At this point, listening to the speech, I was well and truly steaming. Why on Earth was she giving all these anecdotes in a concession speech? This was wholly unnecessary to pass the baton... but wholly necessary to put pressure on Obama for some purpose or other. At this point I think it's less about the VP slot (may it never happen) than about getting her agenda added to, or in the place of, Obama's.

I entered this race because I have an old-fashioned conviction that public service is about helping people solve their problems and live their dreams.

By making all our decisions for us, yes, Hillary, we know.

I've had every opportunity and blessing in my own life, and I want the same for all Americans. And until that day comes, you'll always find me on the front lines of democracy, fighting for the future.

The way to continue our fight now, to accomplish the goals for which we stand is to take our energy, our passion, our strength, and do all we can to help elect Barack Obama, the next president of the United States. Today, as I suspend my campaign, I congratulate him on the victory he has won and the extraordinary race he has run. I endorse him and throw my full support behind him.

Note, if you will, that she doesn't actually admit she was defeated, or that the "victory he has won" includes the nomination.

And I ask all of you to join me in working as hard for Barack Obama as you have for me. I have served in the Senate with him for four years. I have been in this campaign with him for 16 months. I have stood on the stage and gone toe-to-toe with him in 22 debates. I've had a front-row seat to his candidacy, and I have seen his strength and determination, his grace and his grit.

In his own life, Barack Obama has lived the American dream, as a community organizer, in the State Senate, as a United States senator. He has dedicated himself to ensuring the dream is realized. And in this campaign, he has inspired so many to become involved in the democratic process and invested in our common future.

Now, when I started this race, I intended to win back the White House and make sure we have a president who puts our country back on the path to peace, prosperity and progress. And that's exactly what we're going to do, by ensuring that Barack Obama walks through the doors of the Oval Office on January 20, 2009.

Now, I understand -- I understand that we all know this has been a tough fight, but the Democratic Party is a family. And now it's time to restore the ties that bind us together and to come together around the ideals we share, the values we cherish, and the country we love.

We may have started on separate journeys, but today our paths have merged. And we're all heading toward the same destination, united and more ready than ever to win in November and to turn our country around, because so much is at stake.

We all want an economy that sustains the American dream, the opportunity to work hard and have that work rewarded, to save for college, a home and retirement, to afford that gas and those groceries, and still have a little left over at the end of the month, an economy that lifts all of our people and ensures that our prosperity is broadly distributed and shared.

Those last ten words or so send a shiver of fear down my spine, incidentally. "From each according to his ability, and no less; to each according to his need, and nothing more." At least Obama gives lip service to the concept of being free to better oneself.

We all want a health care system that is universal, high-quality and affordable, so that parents don't have to choose between care for themselves or their children or be stuck in dead-end jobs simply to keep their insurance. This isn't just an issue for me. It is a passion and a cause, and it is a fight I will continue until every single American is insured, no exceptions and no excuses.

Translated: "Obama, you damn well better put individual mandates into your plan, or else- because if you don't force people to buy corporate health insurance, it won't really be universal, now will it?"

We all want an America defined by deep and meaningful equality, from civil rights to labor rights, from women's rights to gay rights, from ending discrimination to promoting unionization, to providing help for the most important job there is: caring for our families.

And we all want to restore America's standing in the world, to end the war in Iraq, and once again lead by the power of our values, and to join with our allies to confront our shared challenges, from poverty and genocide to terrorism and global warming.

You know, I've been involved in politics and public life in one way or another for four decades. And during those 40 years, our country has voted 10 times for president. Democrats won only three of those times, and the man who won two of those elections is with us today. We made tremendous progress during the '90s under a Democratic president, with a flourishing economy and our leadership for peace and security respected around the world.

Translated: "And remember, I was his wife- I had a part in all that. I'm STILL the better qualified candidate for President."

Just think how much more progress we could have made over the past 40 years if we'd had a Democratic president. Think about the lost opportunities of these past seven years on the environment and the economy, on health care and civil rights, on education, foreign policy and the Supreme Court. Imagine how far we could have come, how much we could have achieved if we had just had a Democrat in the White House. We cannot let this moment slip away. We have come too far and accomplished too much.

Now, the journey ahead will not be easy. Some will say we can't do it, that it's too hard, we're just not up to the task. But for as long as America has existed, it has been the American way to reject can't-do claims and to choose instead to stretch the boundaries of the possible through hard work, determination, and a pioneering spirit.

It is this belief, this optimism that Senator Obama and I share and that has inspired so many millions of our supporters to make their voices heard. So today I am standing with Senator Obama to say: Yes, we can!

I remember this part, but I don't remember this that follows:

And that together we will work -- we'll have to work hard to achieve universal health care. But on the day we live in an America where no child, no man, and no woman is without health insurance, we will live in a stronger America. That's why we need to help elect Barack Obama our president.

We'll have to work hard to get back to fiscal responsibility and a strong middle class. But on the day we live in an America whose middle class is thriving and growing again, where all Americans, no matter where they live or where their ancestors came from, can earn a decent living, we will live in a stronger America. And that is why we must help elect Barack Obama our president.

We'll have to work hard to foster the innovation that will make us energy independent and lift the threat of global warming from our children's future. But on the day we live in an America fueled by renewable energy, we will live in a stronger America. And that is why we have to help elect Barack Obama our president.

We'll have to work hard to bring our troops home from Iraq and get them the support they've earned by their service. But on the day we live in an America that's as loyal to our troops as they have been to us, we will live in a stronger America. And that is why we must help elect Barack Obama our president.

I zoned out on all that- so that's some material that goes to Hillary's credit.

This election is a turning-point election. And it is critical that we all understand what our choice really is. Will we go forward together, or will we stall and slip backwards?

Now, think how much progress we've already made. When we first started, people everywhere asked the same questions. Could a woman really serve as commander-in-chief? Well, I think we answered that one.

Right- and the answer was "no", Mrs. Bosnia Snipers, Mrs. Voted-to-Declare-Iranian-Army-Terrorists. If the answer had been "yes," Hillary, you would be receiving the concession speech, not giving it.

Could an African-American really be our president? And Senator Obama has answered that one. Together, Senator Obama and I achieved milestones essential to our progress as a nation, part of our perpetual duty to form a more perfect union.

Now, on a personal note, when I was asked what it means to be a woman running for president, I always gave the same answer, that I was proud to be running as a woman, but I was running because I thought I'd be the best president.

"And I still do, hosers. See you in 2012 if not sooner."

But I am a woman and, like millions of women, I know there are still barriers and biases out there, often unconscious, and I want to build an America that respects and embraces the potential of every last one of us.

I ran as a daughter who benefited from opportunities my mother never dreamed of. I ran as a mother who worries about my daughter's future and a mother who wants to leave all children brighter tomorrows. To build that future I see, we must make sure that women and men alike understand the struggles of their grandmothers and their mothers, and that women enjoy equal opportunities, equal pay, and equal respect. Let us resolve and work toward achieving very simple propositions: There are no acceptable limits, and there are no acceptable prejudices in the 21st century in our country.

You can be so proud that, from now on, it will be unremarkable for a woman to win primary state victories, unremarkable to have a woman in a close race to be our nominee, unremarkable to think that a woman can be the president of the United States. And that is truly remarkable, my friends.

"A woman" didn't win all those victories. Mrs. William Jefferson Clinton won them. Hillary, you wouldn't even be in the Senate today except for the fact that your husband was a president. You've won no victories for feminism, but plenty for nepotism.

To those who are disappointed that we couldn't go all of the way, especially the young people who put so much into this campaign, it would break my heart if, in falling short of my goal, I in any way discouraged any of you from pursuing yours. Always aim high, work hard, and care deeply about what you believe in. And, when you stumble, keep faith. And, when you're knocked down, get right back up and never listen to anyone who says you can't or shouldn't go on.

Remember kids, everyone likes a sore loser.

As we gather here today in this historic, magnificent building, the 50th woman to leave this Earth is orbiting overhead. If we can blast 50 women into space, we will someday launch a woman into the White House. Although we weren't able to shatter that highest, hardest glass ceiling this time, thanks to you, it's got about 18 million cracks in it, and the light is shining through like never before, filling us all with the hope and the sure knowledge that the path will be a little easier next time.

"18 million cracks- and that's more than the man I'm endorsing. Remember that in 2012."

That has always been the history of progress in America. Think of the suffragists who gathered at Seneca Falls in 1848 and those who kept fighting until women could cast their votes. Think of the abolitionists who struggled and died to see the end of slavery. Think of the civil rights heroes and foot soldiers who marched, protested, and risked their lives to bring about the end of segregation and Jim Crow. Because of them, I grew up taking for granted that women could vote and, because of them, my daughter grew up taking for granted that children of all colors could go to school together. Because of them, Barack Obama and I could wage a hard-fought campaign for the Democratic nomination. Because of them and because of you, children today will grow up taking for granted that an African-American or a woman can, yes, become the president of the United States. And so when that day arrives, and a woman takes the oath of office as our president, we will all stand taller, proud of the values of our nation, proud that every little girl can dream big and that her dreams can come true in America.

And all of you will know that, because of your passion and hard work, you helped pave the way for that day. So I want to say to my supporters: When you hear people saying or think to yourself, "If only, or, "What if," I say, please, don't go there. Every moment wasted looking back keeps us from moving forward.

"So, let's all forget how I accused Obama of being a stuffed shirt, how my husband accused him of playing the race card after patronizing him in South Carolina, how we claimed he admired Ronald Reagan, how we utterly failed to come to his defense during the Reverend Wright thing, and all the other nastiness we pulled in the past fifteen months. Water under the bridge. We didn't really mean it. And if the Republicans use our own words against Obama, it's not our fault. Really."

Life is too short, time is too precious, and the stakes are too high to dwell on what might have been. We have to work together for what still can be. And that is why I will work my heart out to make sure that Senator Obama is our next president. And I hope and pray that all of you will join me in that effort.

To my supporters and colleagues in Congress, to the governors and mayors, elected officials who stood with me in good times and bad, thank you for your strength and leadership.

To my friends in our labor unions who stood strong every step of the way, I thank you and pledge my support to you.

To my friends from every stage of my life, your love and ongoing commitment sustained me every single day.

To my family, especially Bill and Chelsea and my mother, you mean the world to me, and I thank you for all you have done.

And to my extraordinary staff, volunteers and supporters thank you for working those long, hard hours. Thank you for dropping everything, leaving work or school, traveling to places that you've never been, sometimes for months on end. And thanks to your families, as well, because your sacrifice was theirs, too. All of you were there for me every step of the way.

Now, being human, we are imperfect. That's why we need each other, to catch each other when we falter, to encourage each other when we lose heart. Some may lead, some may follow, but none of us can go it alone. The changes we're working for are changes that we can only accomplish together. Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness are rights that belong to us as individuals. But our lives, our freedom, our happiness are best enjoyed, best protected, and best advanced when we do work together.

That is what we will do now, as we join forces with Senator Obama and his campaign. We will make history together, as we write the next chapter in America's story. We will stand united for the values we hold dear, for the vision of progress we share, and for the country we love. There is nothing more American than that. And looking out at you today, I have never felt so blessed. The challenges that I have faced in this campaign are nothing compared to those that millions of Americans face every day in their own lives.

So today I'm going to count my blessings and keep on going. I'm going to keep doing what I was doing long before the cameras ever showed up and what I'll be doing long after they're gone: working to give every American the same opportunities I had and working to ensure that every child has the chance to grow up and achieve his or her God- given potential. I will do it with a heart filled with gratitude, with a deep and abiding love for our country, and with nothing but optimism and confidence for the days ahead.

This is now our time to do all that we can to make sure that, in this election, we add another Democratic president to that very small list of the last 40 years and that we take back our country and once again move with progress and commitment to the future.

Thank you all. And God bless you, and God bless America.

OK. There was a lot more about Obama than I remembered, and the bulk of the speech is, indeed, about getting her supporters behind Obama. There were a lot of elements in the speech, though, which were either ill-advised or outright antagonistic to party unity. Given the circumstances, I'm going to override my hatred of the Clintons and say that this is a sign of competing speechwriters in the Clinton camp- one last sign of the schizoid organization which played such a large role in costing Clinton the nomination.

I still say: Obama, don't put her on the ticket, no matter the pressure. You will regret it. It might even cost you the election- and it will certainly cost the Democratic Party the election in 2012, because giving Clinton the VP slot keeps her alive for 2012 or 2016. Keep her off the ticket, and she's done- and I still say, despite the admittedly strong effort for Obama in this speech, good riddance.