"SO INSULTED." BY SARAH PALIN

Insulted by Palin ... published here

My friend Cathie called me from San Marino; she was not calm: "Why aren't they sending (Pasadena mayor) Bill Bogaard to the United Nations! I am so insulted! What does it say about this country! She (Gov. Sarah Palin of Alaska) thinks looking across the Gulf of Alaska is foreign policy. I am so insulted. She thinks God wants us in Iraq! I am so insulted."

After about 10 "I am so insulteds," I stopped counting.

MCCAIN DOES NOT DESERVE TO BE PRESIDENT ...

New services reported today that crowds at, "Palin and McCain Rallies Call Obama 'Terrorist;' Shout 'Kill Him'." Read it here.

Palin and McCain allow hate speech to happen by utilizing language that gives people a "freedom" to say hateful things. This isn't the first time that Senator McCain's has created an atmosphere of hate. During an early campaign stop he was confronted with the question, "How do we beat the B****?" referring to Hilary Clinton. I wrote here at the time that McCain’s non-response to that ugly comment did not bode well for the up-coming general election ... I never realized how low they and the Republican party would go to be elected.

Mr. McCain does not deserve to be president; no one deserves to be president that would even indirectly condone that kind of behavior.

A REMINDER - Dust Bin of History Award

Occasionally "The Editors" like to remind our readers of our now famous INTO THE DUST BIN OF HISTORY AWARD.

Given to those person(s) and/or event(s) that in "The Editors" collective minds are "beyond the pale," this exclusive group is made up of the famous, the little known, the ones that don't wanna-be-known and the just plain stupid.

Readers wishing to nominate person(s) and/or event(s) for the INTO THE DUST BIN OF HISTORY AWARD are encouraged to contact "The Editors" HERE.

The only criteria is that the person(s) and/or event(s) be, as "The Editors" have said, "beyond the pale." Former recipients are listed to your right.

Thank you for your participation and your readership.

THE FACTS ON CALIFORNIA PROP 8

I think this has been posted every where ... but it doesn't hurt to say it again ... Fiction vs. the Facts

Fiction: People can be sued over personal beliefs.

Fact: California’s laws already prohibit discrimination against anyone based on race, religion, gender, or sexual orientation. This has nothing to do with marriage.

Fiction: Churches could lose their tax-exemption status.

Fact: Nothing in Prop 8 would force churches to do anything. In fact, the court decision regarding marriage specifically says “no religion will be required to change its religious policies or practices with regard to same-sex couples, and no religious officiant will be required to solemnize a marriage in contravention of his or her religious beliefs.”

Fiction: Same-sex marriage would be taught in public schools.

Fact: Not one word in Prop 8 mentions education, and no child can be forced, against the will of their parents, to be taught anything about health and family issues at school. California law prohibits it. A Sacramento Superior Court judge has already ruled that this claim by the proponents of Prop 8 is “false and misleading.” In fact, the “case” that is cited in the ad is from Massachusetts…the proponents knew what California law said, so they used another state, again to mislead voters.

Fiction: Four Activist Judges in San Francisco…

Fact: Prop 8 is not about courts and judges, it's about eliminating a fundamental right. Judges didn't grant the right, the constitution guarantees the right. Proponents of Prop 8 use an outdated and stale argument that judges aren't supposed to protect rights and freedoms. This campaign is about whether Californians, right now, in 2008 are willing to amend the constitution for the sole purpose of eliminating a fundamental right for one group of citizens.

Regardless of how you feel about the issue, we should not eliminate fundamental rights for ANY Californians. Please vote NO on Prop 8.

PALIN AND The Most Challenged Books of 21st Century (2000-2005)

"And Tango Makes Three," by Justin Richardson and Peter Parnell is the most challenged book in 2008. Reasons: Anti-Ethnic, Sexism, Homosexuality, Anti-Family, Religious Viewpoint

Republican Vice Presidential Candidate Sarah Palin investigated banning books in her home town when she was mayor. Because of that and because of the 25th anniversary of Banned Books Week (September 23-30, 2006), the American Library Association (ALA) compiled the top 10 most challenged books from 2000-2005, with the Harry Potter series of books leading the pack. The 10 most challenged books of the 21st Century (2000-2005) are:

1. Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling
2. "The Chocolate War" by Robert Cormier
3. Alice series by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor
4. "Of Mice and Men" by John Steinbeck
5. "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings" by Maya Angelou
6. "Fallen Angels" by Walter Dean Myers
7. "It's Perfectly Normal" by Robie Harris
8. Scary Stories series by Alvin Schwartz
9. Captain Underpants series by Dav Pilkey
10. "Forever" by Judy Blume

All but three of these books were also in the top 10 of the most challenged books of the 1990s. The ALA reports there were more than 3,000 attempts to remove books from schools and public libraries between 2000 and 2005. Harry Potter tops list of most challenged books of 21st Century.

I am proud to say that I have three of those books in my library along with these that have also been challenged:

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
The Color Purple by Alice Walker
A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
The Lord of the Flies by William Golding
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain
How to Eat Fried Worms by Thomas Rockwell