AND NOW, BACK TO AMERICAN POLITICS

There's an election campaign going on in Canada. We know that and hope that everyone who is eligible to vote does so. But, the American election is much more interesting, especially since the Wall Street meltdown and its aftermath. What happens there will and has affected Canada's economy ~ except that it will be felt further down the road. I received the following from my brother in Maryland. It compares Obama with the Republicans' favourite new candidate, Sarah Palin (who sometimes slips and says she's at the head of the ticket.)

I'm a little confused. Let me see if I have this straight.....

* If you grow up in Hawaii, raised by your grandparents, you're "exotic,
different."

* Grow up in Alaska eating moose burgers, you're a quintessential American story.

* If your name is Barack you're a radical, unpatriotic Muslim.

* If you name your kids Bristol, Willow , Trig and Track, you're a maverick.

* Graduate from Harvard law School and you are unstable.

* Attend 5 different small colleges before graduating, you're well grounded.


* If you spend 3 years as a brilliant community organizer, become the first
black President of the Harvard Law Review, create a voter registration drive
that registers 150,000 new voters, spend 12 years as a Constitutional Law
professor, spend 8 years as a State Senator representing a district with
over 750,000 people, become chairman of the state Senate's Health and Human
Services committee, spend four years in the United States Senate representing
a state of 13 million people while sponsoring 20,131 bills and serving on the
Foreign Affairs, Environment and Public Works, and Veteran's Affairs
committees, you don't have any real leadership experience.

* If your total resume is: local weather girl, 4 years on the city council
and 6 years as the mayor of a town with less than 7,000 people, 20 months as
the governor of a state with only 650,000 people, then you're qualified to
become the country's second highest ranking executive.

* If you teach responsible, age appropriate sex education, including the
proper use of birth control, you are eroding the fiber of society.

* If, you staunchly advocate abstinence only, with no other
option in sex education in your state's school system while, as mayor, charging rape victims for their own "rape kits" and your unwed teen
daughter ends up pregnant, you're very responsible.

* If your wife is a Harvard graduate lawyer who gave up a position in a
prestigious law firm to work for the betterment of her inner city community,
then gave that up to raise a family, your family's values don't represent
America's.

* If your husband is nicknamed "First Dude", with at least one DWI
conviction and no college education, who didn't register to vote until age
25 and once was a member of a group that advocated the secession of Alaska
from the USA, your family is extremely admirable.


OK, much clearer now.