That about sums it up.

The Phillies – behind 3 RBI’s by Brett Myers for goodness sake – are now up 2-0 on Manny and the Dodgers as they head out to LA for game 3 tomorrow night at 8:22 ET.  Dice K, meanwhile, pitched his way out of several jams and shut down the Rays, giving the Sox an important victory away.  They play again tonight, looking to get a serious leg up on the Rays.

Sarah Palin, on the other hand, has been having a rough 24-hours.  Up there in Alaska, they are being kinda picky about ethics and such, doncha think?  I mean, lighten up, folks – it’s when you use your power to benefit financially that there’s a problem.  The Gov and first Dude were just protecting their family, dang it.  Anybody would do the same, doncha think?  You betcha!

On the other hand, here’s a little exercise for GOPers.  Just try substituting Obama’s name in any emerging stories about Governor Palin and see how you feel about ’em.  Try it … see what ya think.  Okay Joe Six Pack, want an example?  (You betcha.)  😉

Branchflower was investigating Obama’s involvement in an effort to get state trooper Mike Wooten fired. Wooten was involved in a nasty divorce from Obama’s sister. Obama and his wife, Michelle, have accused Wooten of threatening Obama’s father.

The investigation also looked into whether Obama dismissed public safety commissioner Walt Monegan because he resisted pressure to fire Wooten.

The report says Obama failed to rein in his wife’s inappropriate efforts to use the senator’s office to contact trooper employees in her attempts to have Wooten fired.

“Senator Obama knowingly permitted a situation to continue where impermissible pressure was placed on several subordinates in order to advance a personal agenda … to get Trooper Michael Wooten fired,” Branchflower’s report says.

“Compliance with the code of ethics is not optional. It is an individual responsibility imposed by law, and any effort to benefit a personal interest through official action is a violation of that trust. … The term ‘benefit’ is very broadly defined, and includes anything that is to the person’s advantage or personal self-interest.”

Oh the horror and indignation!  Oh the fear mongering!  Can’t you just imagine the Republican response if they had anything like this on Obama?  Picture Fox News dealing with the explosive new allegations and the threat they present to the country.  Come on, GOP – I know it’s politics and all, but let’s get real, folks.  Meanwhile – imagine Palin’s own words about the faux Obama-Ayers controversy directed at her ownself, dang it!

“It’s relevant to connect that association he has with Ayers, not so much he as a person Ayers, but the whole situation and the truthfulness and the judgment there that you must question if again he’s not being forthright in all of his answers, “Palin said. “It makes you wonder about the forthrightness, the truthfulness of the plans he’s telling Americans with regards to the economic recovery.”

Pressed on whether she was saying Obama was dishonest, Palin said no.

“But in terms of judgment, in terms of being able to answer a question forthrightly, it has two different parts to it, that judgment and that truthfulness,” she said.

Yes, Sarah, yes!  It’s the whole situation and the truthfulness and the judgment.  Yes!

You know the other thing I find really irksome?  The way Palin is basically inciting the mob and playing to the worst, most divisive tendencies in our body politic (yes, unfortunately, can you say fascism?).  With pretty much nothing to offer herself, she manages to get in there and debase the process and its participants to a truly frightening degree.  As Jeffrey Feldman writes of Palin (and fascism) in the article linked above …

What she does bring is a noteworthy skill with extreme, often violent populism. As a result, she has succeeded at creating intense loyalty to her personally, and deep antipathy for Sen. Obama — also on a personal level. And while this populism has succeeded only amongst small core of the Republican base, the fervency of Palin’s supporters has been amplified a thousand times over by the obsessive media coverage that she enjoys.

So, Sarah Palin is not ‘fascist,’ but that does not mean her language and her events have not had a dangerous impact on our democracy.

And McCain lets it continue. Oh yeah – he said something yesterday – but has he told Palin to zip it?  No.

Instead, his campaign continues to muster weak and spurious attacks on Obama’s character – and now is even questioning Michelle’s supposed “association” with Ayers’ wife!  Sheeeeite!  This is too stupid for words.  I hope it doesn’t go over with the American people (who presumably have more important things – like the tanking economy – on their minds)!