Yesterday, the Russian parliament passed a non-binding resolution requesting that Medvedev declare to two provinces under conflict in the region as independent countries. The western powers “strongly urged” Medvedev not to do so. Strongly urged? What the hell is that?

Today was the first day of the 2008 Democratic National Convention. This post is a summery of the events and speakers for the day.

This morning presidential hopeful Senator Barak Obama announced his decision to pick Delaware Senator Joe Biden to be his running mate.

Sometimes I wonder if we live in a society that promises freedom so long as you use it the way you’re supposed to. While that may sound dark, it provokes a line of thinking that I believe has to be expressed and questioned. Often a candidate is slammed for not believing in our core American values. It’s a successful tactic – and I’m not entirely sure it’s an illegitimate one – but it raises a question.

What are American values?

So, as sort of an ongoing example of the level we’ve sunk to in American politics, the Obama campaign joked that if we allowed off shore drilling, we’d only generate the energy we could save if we properly inflated our tires. Instantly, of course, the McCain camp ridiculed Obama – his plan to energy independence is to give everyone a tire gauge.

The more rational of us rolled our eyes and sighed at the blatant absurdity of mainstream politics.