John McCain surprised me today. I feel I should give him his due.

For days, his and Sarah Palin's fear-mongering attacks on Barack Obama have led their rally attendees to shout racial epithets and even threats of violence. Today, McCain dialed down the rhetoric to the point of admonishing audience members who made ridiculous accusations and assertions. But when he did the right thing by correcting them, his supporters rewarded him with scorn.

Fearing the raw and at times angry emotions of his supporters may damage his campaign, John McCain on Friday urged them to tone down their increasingly personal denunciations of Barack Obama, including one woman who said she had heard that the Democrat  was "an Arab."

Each time he tried to cool the crowd, he was rewarded with a round of boos.

...

"Come on, John!" one audience member yelled out as the Republicans crowd expressed their dismay at their nominee. Others yelled "liar," and "terrorist," referring to Barack Obama.

John McCain today attempted to reverse the dangerous course his campaign recently embarked upon. This is commendable, and I applaud him for it. Perhaps he just didn't realize how insane the GOP "base" actually is, and decided they shouldn't be inflamed. Perhaps he found them (understandably) frightening. Whatever the reason, he made the right call.

It was a belated but welcome act of courage on McCain's part for which I am grateful. Without it, violence was a distinct possibility. For his effort, his audience did all but engage in open revolt.

Considering the negative reaction from the raw meat-loving GOP core the question becomes: Does John McCain have the courage to continue doing the right thing even if it means losing the presidency?

If the answer is "yes" then John McCain may yet save his political legacy. If no, at best McCain will be relegated to the dustbin of history; at worst, he will be responsible for creating a political chasm that could dwarf the one for which George W. Bush is responsible.

This is McCain's moment. Let's pray he really does put "Country First."

Tom Perriello is one of my favorite congressional candidates in the country. He's got a amazing background, he's helped take down Liberian dictator Charles Taylor, was a major player in the peace and reconciliation process in Sierra Leone, helped found the online grassroots people-powered humanitarian movement Avaaz.org and many other things. Now he's running against Virgil Goode, a proud bigot and one of the worst if not the worst member of Congress. And he's been running some great ads created by the best ad firm in the country (IMO) Eichenbaum & Associates

Here is another great ad he's running

And what's Goode running ads about? That Tom used to have a scary beard.

Cross-posted at Motley Moose.

This afternoon, the Supreme Court in Connecticut overturned the state's ban on gay marriage in a 4-3 decision.

From Connecticut Supreme Court Chief Justice Richard Palmer:

We conclude that, in light of the history of pernicious discrimination faced by gay men and lesbians, and because the institution of marriage carries with it a status and significance that the newly created classification of civil unions does not embody, the segregation of heterosexual and homosexual couples into separate institutions constitutes a cognizable harm.

I am going to begin with a blog entry by someone new to blogging but very experienced in life. Helen is an 82 year old grandmother who has started blogging...and she is saying what we are all thinking about Sarah Palin:

Who can turn the world on with her smile?
Who can take a nothing day and suddenly make it all seem worthwhile?

Well it's NOT you girl...

(cross posted at kickin it with cg)

After the culmination of months of heated debate, today in Quebec City, Dr. Henry Morgentaler received the Order of Canada.  The Order of Canada, the highest civilian honour in the country, recognizes a lifetime of outstanding achievement and dedication to community.

In a statement released Thursday, Governor General Michaëlle Jean said that Morgentaler has had "a major impact" on Canadian public policy.  "A Holocaust survivor, he has not hesitated to put himself at risk in his determined drive to increase health-care options for Canadian women," the statement reads.

"He has been a catalyst for change and important debate, influencing public policy nationwide. He has heightened awareness of women's reproductive health issues among medical professionals and the Canadian public."

After it was announced in July that it would bestow the award on Morgentaler, some past recipients, angry at the decision, gave back their medals in protest.  `If the majority have decided this is OK and a good thing, the minority has to accept it and understand that not all laws and rights will agree with our own personal beliefs.'  Jean said.  Among those who returned their medals were Montreal Cardinal Jean-Claude Turcotte, former New Brunswick lieutenant-governor Gilbert Finn and B.C. priest Lucien Larré.

Born in Poland in 1923, Morgentaler and is a Holocaust survivor that lived in the Łódź ghetto until 1944, after which he was detained and sent to Auschwitz.  Morgentaler immigrated to Canada from Poland after the Second World War and opened a clinic in Montreal in 1969, where he performed thousands of what were then illegal abortions.

Morgentaler gave up his family practice and began openly performing illegal abortions in his private clinic in 1968. At the time abortion was illegal except for cases in which continuing a pregnancy threatened the life of the pregnant woman. On August 26, 1969, an amendment to the Criminal Code legalized abortion in Canada if performed in a hospital after approval of a Therapeutic Abortion Committee which was a three-doctor hospital abortion committee.  Morgentaler's abortions remained illegal under that new law; they became legal in January 1988 as section 251 of the Criminal Code (now known as section 287) was found to be unconstitutional by the Supreme Court of Canada.

A family physician, Morgentaler argued that access to abortion was a basic human right and that women should not have to risk death in order to end their pregnancies. Morgentaler's clinics were often raided by police, and one in Toronto was firebombed.

Morgentaler was arrested several times and spent months in jail as he fought his case at all court levels in Canada.

"Canada is one of the few places in the world where freedom of speech and choice prevail in a truly democratic fashion," he said, reading from a statement.  I'm proud to have been given this opportunity coming from a war-torn Europe to realize my potential and my dream - that is to create a better and more humane society."

The poll on the presidential race in Georgia now mirrors the very tight senatorial race in Georgia.

Insider Advantage has just released its poll of Likely Voters in Georgia. Senator Obama is now within the margin of error of Senator McCain in that state.

McCain 49%
Obama 46%
10/9, 509 LV, 4%

This is incredible news for Senator Obama's campaign. Especially after a poll earlier today showing phenomenal results in West Virginia.

Since there was heavy turnout among African-Americans ( 30% of all early voters) who have already voted, the McCain camp should be very concerned.

Two polls on the senate race confirmed the very competitive race. One more poll on the Obama/McCain Georgia race should confirm this incredible surge by Senator Obama.

Let's Go Obama !

http://www.pollster.com/blogs/insideradv antage_ga_oh_109.php

You know things are not going well at the top of the ticket in a given state when major figures on the rest of the ballot start skipping rallies. Such was the case today, according to the Washington Post.

Crossposted at Motley Moose

Despite a public outcry and resounding condemnation from the chattering class (brilliantly documented by DCDemocrat) about whipping angry mobs to a near violent frenzy with devisive (and false) rhetoric, the McCain/Palin campaign reached an all new low today.

John McCain had a chance to do the right and honorable thing, which would have been to condemn the lunatics who shout out things like Traitor!, Terrorist! , Kill him!, or verbally accost African American members of the media. Up until today, he appeared to have chosen the slimy route instead, and by letting it go on, they've essentially encouraged the toxic behavior.  Both Obama and Biden have pushed back hard against the smears, and by all accounts they've done so effectively.