Whew

Thank goodness for small favors. With this already crowded field (on both sides), I don't think Kerry would help the Dems. If I had my druthers, he would have never gotten the nomination in 04. I don't think he helped last go-round; I think he was the "anybody but Bush" candidate. I think he'd only be a distraction if he ran again. Alas.

For 08, I actually really like Bill "the resume" Richardson. He brings a lot of experience to the table, but I wonder about his charisma? I've actually met him (once), and while he's quite personable, I don't know if he can sway a large crowd the way the Bill Clinton or Obama can. Of course, Hillary is damned smart, too, but she is an incredibly polarizing individual. People either like her or can't stand her. There are no swing voters to be convinced. And sadly, I really think this country is not ready to elect a woman.* Obama looks promising, but I wish he'd hold off a few years.

And I want to see what happens with Romney, Guiliani and McCain (the self-declared "conservative Republican"...!).

Any way you look at it, though, the next year is gonna be interesting.

*SM has observed that women are more likely to say that this country's voting population is more prejudiced against a woman as president than a black man as president, but that blacks are more likely, in his experience, to believe that we would elect a woman before a black man. His point is basically, that our beliefs are colored (pardon the pun) by our personal histories and experiences -- so that I, as a woman, perceive the gender bias to be stronger than the race bias. And this makes logical sense, although I definitely do recognize that racial prejudice and stereotypes are a huge societal problem. But consider that it's still perfectly okay to make PMS jokes about a woman (to somehow "explain" her behavior), yet we would never consider it acceptable to use racial stereotypes. Women just get short shrift when it comes to leadership attributes. We aren't recognized as having them. You know... that old comparison that an aggressive, demanding woman is a "shrill bitch" but the same qualities in a man are seen as positive. Too many people believe that women think with their emotions (exclusively) while men think with their brains (well, Bill Clinton proved that's not true). And that's part of the reason why I think we're still not there. Sad, sad, sad.