According to this poll Ned Lamont is now ahead in a key poll on the Connecticut Democratic primary race. But incumbent Senator Joe Lieberman would win in the general race if he runs as an independent due to his strength among Republican and independent voters. Will this be a harbinger of the 2008 primary season? Could the eventual winner be someone beloved by many Democratic partisans but be far less viable in a general election where you also need to appeal to a more diverse constituency?

We’ve gotten some emails from readers asking about how to donate to help children in the Middle East. CLICK HERE to find out about how to help Israeli kids who are in range of Hezbollah rockets. Also CLICK HERE for Mercy Corps, which is collecting money to help Lebanese families displaced by the ongoing violence. (Due to time constraints, we’ll offer these two but if readers have other suggestions, please leave them in comments. If you want to donate we STRONGLY urge you to check out...

Not only did 911 INVOLVE hijacking, but more and more we are seeing clear signs of how this national tragedy which created fleeting bipartisan, national unity is BEING hijacked. Here’s the latest outrage: The controversial video of the burning World Trade Center towers in a television campaign ad for Ohio Sen. Mike DeWine is doctored, U.S. News has learned. The television spot, which has been lambasted by critics as a political exploitation of the Sept. 11, attacks Democrat challenger Rep....

From moderate cartoonist Tom Briscoe:

TMV will be on the road all day. He won’t be posting but please check back to see what our always talented co-bloggers have to say on breaking and non-breaking stories.

The United States gave Israel the “green light” for its attack in responding to Hezbollah — and the signal light has now turned “yellow” light because it’s about to turn red, the Guardian reports: The US is giving Israel a window of a week to inflict maximum damage on Hizbullah before weighing in behind international calls for a ceasefire in Lebanon, according to British, European and Israeli sources. The Bush administration, backed by Britain, has blocked efforts...

Another gem from TMV’s favorite poet, Michael Silverstein, aka Wall Street Poet: Given what’s in newspapers these days, it’s probably best not to read one shortly after rereading William Butler Yeats “The Second Coming.” Doing so may lead to thoughts such as these… The Coming Conflagration The problem with a tenderbox The cause for great dismay Is that once you¹ve stacked the kindling You are just a spark away From the loosing of a fire That becomes a conflagration Spreading...

The Moderate Voice always encourages blogs to do original reporting. Why? Because blogs have a potential to be FAR more than just ornate op-ed pages (which is what this one is most of the time as well). Blogging allows ANYONE to create, package and present ORIGINAL reporting to readers — without having an editor to give a green-light on what and how it is presented. skippy the bush kangaroo (who writes in lowercase) has an interview that should be of SPECIAL interest to all readers —...

It sounds as if even You-Know-Who couldn’t help former Christian Coalition leader Ralph Reed get elected in Georgia — and a guy name Jack Abramoff certainly didn’t help: Former Christian Coalition leader Ralph Reed conceded defeat about 9:50 p.m. in Georgia’s Republican primary for lieutenant governor. “Tonight my candidacy for lieutenant governor comes to an end,â€? he said. He promised to work for the GOP ticket, including Sen. Casey Cagle (R-Gainesville), his...

Rasmussen Reports has been one of the polling firms documenting President George Bush’s slide in the polls. Now, in recent weeks, it is noting a slow rebound: Forty-four percent (44%) of Americans approve of the way that George W. Bush is performing his role as President. Fifty-five percent (55%) disapprove of the job President Bush has been doing. Much of the improvement for the President is the result of his base coming home. His support among Republicans is down one point, however, to 74%....

These announcements by the New York Times are NOT the signs of a healthy, thriving newspaper: The New York Times is planning to reduce the size of the newspaper, making it narrower by one and a half inches, and to close its printing operation in Edison, N.J., company officials said yesterday. The changes, to go into effect in April 2008, will be accompanied by a phased-in redesign of the paper and will mean the loss of 250 production-related jobs. Several other American broadsheets reduced their...

Have you noticed a trend in news coverage? Russia’s bigwig Vladimir Putin has now taken world center stage as a kind of “high concept” leader — someone who has developed a finely-etched personality that comes across strongly in print and broadcast news reports. In this age of personality-increases-clout-politics acquiring an immediately recognizeable media personality is a notable development in political evolution. The Telegraph: The big surprise of the G8 summit was its...

If you don’t think they sing the same song, here’s definitive proof: UPDATE: Apparently Tony Blair isn’t the only one GWB likes.

Uh, oh, the PC (Politically Correct) Police — those who decry how plastic politicians are but leap all over them when they speak in everyday language — will be all over this one: It wasn’t meant to be overheard. Private luncheon conversations among world leaders, picked up by a microphone, provided a rare window into both banter and substance — including President Bush cursing Hezbollah’s attacks against Israel. Bush expressed his frustration with the United Nations...

The indispensible site Watching America has this must-read post translation (a translation only available on the WA site) of a Lebanese opinion piece on the new Middle East turmoil. We’ll give you WA’s set up and then a key excerpts here: Is the Israeli attack on Lebanon a signal that the United States can no longer be counted upon to follow through on its commitments? According to this op-ed article from Lebanon’s An-nahar, for the sake of Lebanon and American credibility, President...

From Cox & Forkum:

Dore Gold, president of the Jerusalem Centre for Public Affairs, and Israel’s ambassador to the UN from 1997 to 1999, has a piece in the Telegraph that needs to be read in full. The key quotes are at the end: This is a regional war. Iran is seeking to dominate Iraq, particularly its southern Shia areas – the provinces where British troops are deployed. Iran’s aim is to dominate oil-producing areas by agitating the Shia populations of Kuwait, Bahrain and the eastern provinces of...

…in the 21st century.

Is there “blowback” in Chicago?

TMV wings his way back to California today after his appearance in his other incarnation at a county fair in Iowa. The temperature was well over 100 degrees yesterday…with humidity that seemed to match. Over the past few days TMV has been on a very limited blogging schedule. All of his posts have been done very quickly. He’ll resume his usual posts — which take more time to write but seem as if they were written very quickly — tomorrow.