You need to hear the candidates in their own words:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UabzJm8HNNU

The best, most informative substantive display of the candidates and what they believe, their thoughts and ideas.

One of my favorite John McCain ads has been "I am Joe".

It's less than a week before the election and undecided voters are trying to figure out why they should vote McCain - Palin.  It's now, more than ever, that we need more Joe's to stand up and offer their reasons to undecided voters why John McCain and Sarah Palin is the right choice for America.

12secRads is looking for those Joe's.  Record a 12 second video of yourself saying why you are Joe too, or your personal story of how an Obama presidency would affect you, or your thoughts, or why you are supporting and / or voting for John McCain and Sarah Palin.  Email it to 12sec.R.ads, and maybe you will see yourself being the next Joe.  12secRads details here.


12secRads on 12seconds.tv

Update: Lagomorphic was informed that twitter has a auto-follow feature.  When a twitter-er follows your account, twitter can set your account to automatically follow them [view their tweets].  Even with this, I think there should be a little oversight and discretion.  If one is trying to portray an image of a clean and a non-divisive campaign, I'd try and keep up on it.  Even if it was an oversight, once it was pointed out, I would go to great lengths to correct it, blocking their account.  Let's see what happens, if nothing, then that would be telling.

Whoever is manning the Obama twitter account should think about having a little discretion. [note: To follow someones "tweets" takes the physical act of the account holder to click a Follow button.  Whoever is overseeing Barack Obama's twitter account consciously and voluntarily added the accounts mentioned below.]

Lagomorphic gives the lowdown on who the Obama twitter account is following and it's a reference to Sarah Palin's private parts.  [I wouldn't let kids see.  It can get personal.]

velvethammer, at Ironic Surrealism II, gives a couple more of who Obama's twitter account is following.

Just saying.  Might want to take a second look.

on another note:

Join in getting Hugh Hewitt connected with his listeners, us, via web 2.0 and twitter.

I'm sure you know or have heard by now about the American flags found in bags discarded by the dumpsters at Invesco Field for a week and a day after Barack Obama's speech.  If not update here [got link from Hugh Hewitt].

I'd like to point out something Ed Morrissey says on his post about it:

"No one suggested here that it was a “nefarious plot”, and like Harsanyi, I hardly think that Obama would have directed his staff to throw 12,000 American flags in a dumpster. In fact, until Team Obama issued this ludicrous statement, the story didn’t have anything to do with them. However, the obvious carelessness with which the DNCC treated the flags is a rather revealing moment for them, and the lie for people in Obama’s organization."

[Emphasis mine]  That's the poignant point.  I'll leave it there because Ed said it better than I could and I would rehash it all in a blubber that's not as concise.

added the video before he came out to the clip.  thought it was good to add.

One of my favorite lines from tonight:  "We never hide from history. We make history."
And I want to be maybe the first to point out a stark difference I saw tonight with what we saw last week at Obama's acceptance speech in Denver.  I loved that McCain and Palin went into the crowd and shook the hands of the people.  Obama graced us with his family and Biden's family next to their Col-Obama-seum.  Very different.  Anyone else?

rnc transcript here.

generic transcript and audio of speech here.

Just saw a link to a web site that has Chuck Norris like facts for Sarah Palin.  Don't like the Chuck Norris facts but these ones are true about Sarah Palin.  "Sarah Palin is the reason compasses point North."

from Matt Lewis [but not just priceless -- precious]:

rnc transcript here.

generic transcript but link to audio here.

[via the ap]:

At the root of the dispute is McCain's decision to call attention to a Hamas adviser's apparent affinity for Obama. The adviser, Ahmed Yousef, said in a recent interview: "We like Obama and hope that he will win the election."

...

"This is offensive, and I think it's disappointing, because John McCain always says, 'Well, I'm not going to run that kind of politics,'" Obama said. "And then to engage in that kind of smear, I think, is unfortunate, particularly since my policy toward Hamas has been no different than his."

The Illinois senator added: "For him to toss out comments like that, I think, is an example of him losing his bearings as he pursues this nomination. We don't need name-calling in this debate."

[via foxnews.com] we get Hamas political adviser Ahmed Yousef' words:

“We don’t mind–actually we like Mr. Obama. We hope he will (win) the election and I do believe he is like John Kennedy, great man with great principle, and he has a vision to change America to make it in a position to lead the world community but not with domination and arrogance,” Yousef said in response to a question about the group’s willingness to meet with either of the Democratic presidential candidates.

(Full interview)

First, it's offensive?  To point out Hamas seems to have a preference for one candidate over the other?  Second, it's a smear?  It's their position, right?  McCain hasn't said Obama likes it or accepts it or is grateful for it or endorses it et al.  It's just the facts.  Third, it's name calling?  Ok, I haven't heard every time McCain has brought this fact up or read everything on it but what name is he calling Obama?

Obama to his credit did say, "We must not negotiate with a terrorist group intent on Israel’s destruction... We should only sit down with Hamas if they renounce terrorism, recognize Israel’s right to exist, and abide by past agreements.”

But McCain is drawing the distinction that it's Obama's stance on foreign policy that seems to get Hamas's thumbs up:

The McCain fundraising e-mail says Obama’s stands have earned him “kind words” from Hamas. “John McCain's foreign policy provides a stark contrast to the policies of Barack Obama,” writes Ferry. “While Senator Obama would surrender in Iraq and hold talks with the Iranian regime, John McCain will never surrender in the struggle with Islamic extremists."

If I was Hamas and I'm hearing a presidential candidate who wants to pull out of/surrender in Iraq, says he believes we should be having talks with the "Iranian regime" [who seem "...intent on Israel's destruction..."], I would like him too, despite Obama saying "we must not negotiate with a terrorist group..."  Because it means there is hope that I won't get shocked and awed.  I might be able to convince him not to attack us, that we just need to talk just a wee bit more.

McCain is saying nothing more than Hamas likes Obama's foreign policies better then his own.

~tohu.va.vohu