Atrios with two incisive comments, here and here.

There is no question of any suspicion of illegal campaign finance going on here. Note that this is from those famed liberal Islamofacsists at the Wall Street Journal.

Hilarious money quote:

A Hess Office Manager and Her Husband, an Amtrak Foreman, Donated $57,000. As reported by Talking Points Memo, drawing from analysis by Campaign Money Watch, “The FEC filings show that Alice Rocchio, who’s identified as a Hess office manager, and her husband, Pasquale Rocchio, who’s described as an Amtrak “track foreman,” each separately donated $28,500 to the RNC-McCain fund, which is called McCain Victory 2008. They gave the money on June 24th, the same day that the ten Hess execs and family members each shelled out the same amount. So the Rocchios, who live in Flushing, Queens, donated a total of $57,000 to McCain’s efforts.” [Talking Points Memo, 8/4/08]

An office manager and a track foreman for Amtrak, finding a spare $28.5K. Each! Nice work if you can get it!

McCain coughs up his wife as a potential candidate for hottest naked chick, or something. A man of the people, after all.

Bob Somerby explains the Meta-narrative as only he can, and does. Mostly about why the Dems always lose. Money quote:

As has long been noted, voters prefer Democrats on most major issues; this has been the case for years. For that reason, Republicans have largely built White House campaigns around alleged issues of “character.” Especially in the Clinton-Gore era, the mainstream press corps played along, giving loud voice to comic-book claims. (Al Gore was raised at the Ritz!) Today, Obama is said to be haughty, pretentious—much like the others before him.

In the process, punishing narratives have locked into place about those haughty Dems. (John Edwards had a big house!) If you’re didn’t finish fifth from the bottom when you were in college—if you actually know what you’re talking about—you’re slammed for gross condescension. At present, this is how White House elections get decided—and liberal elites have done an extremely poor job explaining this bull-roar to the public. But, for reasons unknown, Herbert thinks it must be all about race when this theme is now dumped on Obama’s head.”

Paris responds! When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro. Jesse Taylor has more.

The GOP turns a completely reasonable, free, sane energy conservation idea into a national joke. Politics is the last true blood-sport.

It is too late for us to be saved. This is just a partial sampling of the moronitude. The election is close. Which is embarrassing on its face. We are a nation ruled by a tiny minority of crazed idiots. It cannot be stopped.

You heard it here first. (Well, OK, maybe not, but it is still fact.)

Update: I need to apologize to The Rude Pundit for not thinking of him w/r/t this post. The Rude Pundit knows his biker conventions. The Rude Pundit is the Michelangelo of The Rude and Smart and Real.