a Thousand Points of Fight, June 1

The wonder of democracy is the ample opportunity to fight over stuff. Wouldn't have it any other way, would we? Here are a few of BIRCHES' ineffectual jabs ----

SECRETARY OF DEFENSE ROBERT GATES - should add something to his statement that U.S. navy ships will be leaving the Burma coast without helping the storm victims there. He should call for the filing of Crimes Against Humanity charges against the government of that tyranny.

OBAMA and his church - He was a lot more civilized and thoughtful than most of us would have been if we had to quit our church because the bastards yakking there couldn't keep themselves from hurting us. Barack's conduct in all of this has been very impressive. He looks exactly as cool (in more ways than one) as we want a President to be.

DEMOCRATIC CONVENTION - we think the Democratic Party did the right thing in seeing that the voters of Michigan, our home state, are represented at their cabalistic gathering in Denver. The precise number of votes each candidate should receive is screwed up because the political functionaries failed to accommodate their "rules" to the realities in various states. This is at least a solution. Gee, thanks, people. If Hillary had quit when all the jabberers were saying she should, Michigan and Florida would have no votes at all. When did Democrats become so afraid of democracy?

McCAIN - has been visiting Walter Reed Army Hospital. Bravo! We should all be frequently reminded of our responsibilities for those who went and suffered in our name.