I've been utterly stunned by Saddam Hussein Osama's cleverness.

• I mean, this guy came out of nowhere to kill the Clinton machine, with a near-genius manipulation of Democratic caucuses.
• He reinvented fund-raising with internet technology, riding on the back of a couple of bestselling books he tossed out a few years ago.
• His speeches are Fuhrer-like pieces of rhetorical brilliance
• Now he's busily triangulating the GOP Christian base out of the equation and lining up Democratic heavyweights to fight his battles.

Americans spend billions of dollars on their democracy, so perhaps once in a while they deserve the "perfect candidate". Perhaps that's what Obama is - the perfect, machine-tooled political ubermensch.

But surely it's legitimate to worry that if someone seems too good to be true - and BHO kinda does - then perhaps they might be?

His speeches are Fuhrer-like? Are you serious? I have to assume that either you haven't heard a hitler speech or you haven't heard an Obama speech.

If you want to hear propaganda speeches just listen to McCains "straight talk". Straight off the Karl Rove playbook.

I remember in 2000 McCain got my attention by calling the nutjob christian right what they are-"agents of intolerance". Now the turncoat is calling them his friends and taking their money. Thats what I call having convictions.

And when asked how he feels about Roe V Wade, McCain wont say anything straight or otherwise. He just says he'll pick good SJC judges who are "qualified". In other words, he wants to out us back in the days of the back alley abortions and mysterious "brothers" and "sisters" who came to mom and dad late in life.

"I was a POW" McCain says calling it a badge of service. Thats a hero? Do time in Charlie's bamboo hotel and that makes you a hero? So much for the silver star Kerry got recuing commandos.

the Silver Star John Kerry wrote up for himself for an incident in which he ran down and killed an unarmed supposed VC who was already wounded?

I think perhaps, having already flown numerous dangerous missions over NVN and being shot down, tortured (real, not the oh so terrible make me feel bad about myself we now commiserate over), and turning down release to support his fellow prisoners, John McCain is a real hero.

Do I support and defend every position of John McCain, hell no. But do I see him as a real hero, hell Yes.

Greenwich...I know there are people like you, but honestly, I'm always shocked when they so blatantly display their narrow-mindedness.

Moron. You cannot put yourself in for a silver star-in fact you need witnesses. Kerry was put in for his silver star by witnesses and by his commander-he couldnt do it himself if he wanted to. The lying swiftboat vets refused to testify against the statements of Kerrys Silver Star documentation under oath-PROOF that THEY were the liars-not Kerry. The events as documented indicate that Kerry rescued commandos while under fire even when ordered to leave the battle he stayed to rescue them first. If an NVA soldier was wounded that doesnt change the reality that Kerry was under fire and Im sure the men he got out of there are grateful he helped them.

Kerry also had the willingness to stand against the government after getting back from Vietnam and seeing what the people were being told vs what the reality was on the ground in Vietnam (sound familiar?). It took a lot of guts to protest a war when you were once a soldier in that war-but his personal values won over blind loyalty to a lying government. I call THAT a hero.

McCain was a spoiled little rich kid who got shot down by an archaic AA weapon because he was an incompetent pilot with an expensive toy-he was at the bottom of his class at Anapolis but daddy got him a choice spot anyway. When he was a prisnor he was "tortured" a lot less than the others because of his daddy. It was indeed honorable to say he didnt want a free ride home-but does that make him a hero? You do understand that had he not been who he was he wouldnt have had that choice to make right? How many other pilots were given the option of going home early?

Since then what has McCain done? He stayed in the service (on the government payroll and health benefit plan) until he retired from service and then became a public servant. He has never had to earn or keep a job and never faced the prospect of losing his health care or his job to a layoff or failure of an industry because of foreign competition. He cannot relate to the average working American.

I cannot find anything about him which quaifies him as a president beyond being an old white man.

Greenwich, this is even disappointing for you. I rarely agree with your POV, but I at least find you articulate and intelligent. Here, though, you have put that entire notion into question:

To wit:

Saddam Hussein Osama's: really, is that the best you can do? The man has a very common Arabic middle name and a last name that rhymes with the name of a terrorist, so you concatenate the two to make for a diabolic moniker. I have seen more creativity on the playground.

[t]his guy came out of nowhere: No, not really. He has been seen as a rising political star since his days at the Harvard Law Review. The New York Times did an article on him in 1990, in which it discussed his prospects. In the article, Obama stated he planned to pursue a career in politics.

He was elected to the Illinois Senate six years later, where he remained until he was elected to the U.S. Senate in 2004. That same year, he became a household name among Democrats after delivering the keynote address at the Democratic National Convention.

By the time Obama announced his bid for presidency, he was already well known in the Democratic Party and he was immediately regarded as the most formidible opponent to the then front-runner, Hillary Clinton.

Reinvented fundraising: Again, not really. He used the technology that had become ubiquitious. He certainly was not the first, nor the only candidate to use internet fundraising (e.g. Ron Paul). John Kerry was also wildly successful at internet fundraising.

His speeches are Fuhrer-like pieces of rhetorical brilliance: This is just pure non-sense unless you consider any speaker that is articulate and able to excite an audience "Fuhrer-like."

Let's do a comparison, here is an Adolf Hitler speech and here is a Barack Obama speech.

OK, Saddam Hussein Obama was a cheap shot merely aimed to annoy. I grant you that.

But I find the rest of what you say unconvincing. Obama's political record is neither lengthy nor distinguished; making a splash as a student politician (if that's what he was) doesn't really count. I didn't even know Illinois had a legislature till this year; I guess it's on a par with the Welsh Assembly or something equally pitiful.

Adolf Hitler was very good at giving speeches, even something his detractors admit. Like Obama, he was able to enrapture an audience desperate for someone to lead them out of economic decline and military failure. Your point that they had different speaking styles is very irrelevant.

As it happens, I want Obama to win in November - I'm a sucker for novelty, and he's an interesting man. But as we're in the business of doing links, Charles Krauthammer did a good job of expressing my view of the candidate in today's Post.

Your ignorance of McCain is terrible. A spoiled rich kid, no. Son of a serving Navy Officer, Yes. Fourth from bottom in his class at Annapolis, yes, also one of the few who qualified for Annapolis in the first place. As a grad of West Point, let me assure you connections will get you considered, it will not get you qualified or admitted. Nor will it get you to graduate.

After all his years of real torture, yes real torture, he is released and continues to serve his country honorably. After retirement he continues service to his country. What is the problem?

You find his record objectionable yet glory in the road to political prominence followed by Barack Obama, who never wore the uniform, fought for his country and has little real history of accomplishment.

Why? Because McCain is retired military and you have no respect for military service? Or are you like so many I work with you do not believe that I should be able to receive my retirement check for my 20 years honorable service in the Army and still be paid for my hard work as a civil servant working for the citizens in a new capacity. I earn both, why should I not receive both?

GreenwichJ:

OK, Saddam Hussein Obama was a cheap shot merely aimed to annoy. I grant you that.

Your entire post was a cheap shot, not that it surprises me.

And why invoke Hitler when talking about being good at giving speeches? That's just a disgusting smear. Was Hitler the only person in history who was good at giving speeches before Obama? What about FDR, Kennedy, Reagan, Lincoln, any other president who was known for his ability to deliver a good speech?

"enrapture an audience desperate for someone to lead them out of economic decline"?? Jeez, what the hell do you think Reagan did to win the 1980 race?

Greenwich, this was beneath even your normally low standards for discussion. People like you claim that Obama is empty suit who lacks experience, but instead of actually trying to offer a counter vision to what he actually says in his speech, you offer nothing but empty smears.

It's really quite hard to counter what Obama says in his speeches. But I'll give it a go.

Do I oppose "change"? I don't know. Change is a fairly broad concept.

Do I want to ditch the old style of politics? Er, I don't know. Depends what you mean.

Do I want to end political division? Categorically not. To do so would exchange democracy for a one-party state a la China.

Do I see America as the last, best hope for mankind? No. This is a ludicrous statement.

I could go on. By engaging in such broad rhetoric Obama has set himself as a blank canvas onto which you can project any political fantasy you please. I chose to project a sinister, Nazi quality on him to make a change from your messianic visions.

So, instead of looking at an actual speech like the one linked above, you just continue to make empty statements of your own.

Yes, he make change his slogon, but he has listed specific changes he wants to make in our foreign policy, healthcare, and economgy. Try looking them up instead of just being glib.

I'll tell what "old style politics" I'd like to ditch and it's the politics of the smear propagated by Rove and his ilk. Obviously, you've embraced that, so I guess your answer is no.

"Do I want to end political division? Categorically not. To do so would exchange democracy for a one-party state a la China."

Really? Did you say that to Bush when he ran claiming to be a "uniter"? No one expects everyone to suddenly agree on everything, but a little civility in our discourse would be nice. Again, you obviously disagree.

"Do I see America as the last, best hope for mankind? No. This is a ludicrous statement."

Really? Did you say that to Reagan when he made similar pronouncements, or do you only find it ludicrous when a politician you don't like says it?

The only people who speak of Obama in "messianic" terms are the smear artists like yourself. Again, your Hitler reference served no other purpose.

And when did being a good public speaker suddenly become a bad thing? It certainly wasn't when Reagan was praised as the Great Communicator.

That to me is the saddest commentary about the republican party today. Whatever anyone thinks of Reagan's policies, the man could inspire people with imagery about America like the "shining city on the hill". Today's GOP has nothing to offer the our political dialogue except fear and smear.

"I didn't even know Illinois had a legislature till this year..."

Really? Did you not know that Illinois is a state? Or do you not understand that states have their very own government? Yes, each of them, even your own.

You have to realize that Greenwichj is British. The concept of a federal system of government is new to him. He constantly displays his ignorance on how the American system of state and federal governments in this forum.

You know, if I recall correctly, Hitler had only one famous publication to his name, while Obama has two, making his twice as Hitlerian as even der fuhrer himself. If we apply the "You know who ELSE was a great pubilc speaker?" logic, that is.