He’s back in the news, folks. After a recent spate of badly written books, (perhaps the world’s most famous living) novelist Salman Rushdie is once again in the center of controversy after Britain awarded him a knighthood on Saturday, June 16th. Once again, Iran is at the helm of the controversy, being one of the first countries to publicly announce that Britain’s honoring “one of the most hated men in the Islamic world” is a clear insult to Islam. And once again, the conflict is centered around Satanic Verses.

The situation, of course, . . .

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Last night, when you were tossing and turning in bed, trying to sleep, I bet you were thinking: “What would Senator John McCain bring with him if stranded on a desert island?”

The answer? “Books.” You’re getting those 40 winks tonight!

Check out these “Desert Island Necessities” from PoliticalWire.com—presidential candidates’ answers to a question from the Associated Press: “what would you most like to have if you were stranded on a desert island?”

Some candidates went right for the loopholes, naturally: Gov. Bill Richardson answered, “a Blackberry and a Davidoff cigar.”

Good thinking, . . .

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Some of you may already have seen the YouTube video documenting American intellectual prowess, but in case not, it’s worth a view. Watch it and decide if it’s depressing or hilarious….

It’s called Americans Are Not Stupid, with Subtitles. It’s a few minutes long.

This reminds me of a funny story. Or a depressing story. Definitely a related story. Yesterday a member of my family sent a petition to other members of my family (not me). The petition was one of those bogus right-wing scare tactic petitions talking about how the bad “illegals” are trying to steal good, . . .

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I hope everyone who can vote is voting today. And I hope you vote for the good guys. I’m swinging wildly between optimism and pessimism from minute to minute, to the point that I may soon need a hamburger / some drugs to calm me down. Time to go to Burger King.

• U.S. Cops Sue Over Drug-Spiked Burgers

Meanwhile, here’s a good news / bad news round-up for election day:

• Republicans closing gap as U.S. votes.” 
• Democrats concerned about races they thought they had in the bag.”
• In better news from Virginia, Jim Webb . . .

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Campaigns are getting dirtier and dirtier — I thought some of the Minnesota races’ ads were bad, but Senator Allen’s staff here literally stoops pretty low, wrestling a constituent to the floor. With a headlock.

As you may have heard in video above, CNN reports that Mike Stark, the guy with the backpack who was roughed up, was a “protester.” Mr. Stark, in a letter to a local news station here, identifies himself as a “law student at the University of Virginia, a marine, and a citizen journalist.” You might know him better as . . .

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