And you could almost hear 3,000 collective moans...

Somedays I really wish I was rich.

I'd like to be rich to pay off my debts, or get a car, or buy new clothes, or get my girlfriend something nice. Then there are days like yesterday when, as I watched George W. Bush speak at the Republican National Convention, I wish I was rich so I could afford to throw my television out the window and buy a new one.

Unbelievable. That's really all I can say.

It was unbelievable the balls that it took for Bush's campaign team to create a presentation that was nearly totally based on the events and subsequent deaths of 9/11. It was unbelievable the sheer tonnage of testicles that it took for Bush to deliver that speech without dropping dead of embarassment. And finally it must have been an unbelievable Herculean effort for Bush Sr. Not to rise from his chair, climb down to the stage and pimp slap his son for having the audacity to drag the memory of the victims of 9/11 into the dregs of his empire-dreaming unilateral fantasies.

Kerry's presentation (Narrated powerfully by Morgan Freeman) gave a complete image of the senators birth, military resume, and subsequent activism following his service, his rise in the senate and his vision of the future. GWB's presentation was a collection of sound bytes around and at Ground Zero, with Disney images of him hugging every black person he could wrap his arms around. Then with nothing left, his team chose the one image they could find to sum up his perseverance, endurance and leadership...Tossing the first pitch at a Yankee game.

Yes, Bush was going to throw from the bottom of the mound, but Derek Jeter (I wonder how much he likes having his name dragged at the bottom of the Bush propaganda motorcade?) told him, "At Yankee Stadium, you throw from the top of the mound." Faced with this challenge, and burdened down with the weight of body armor, George W. Bush made his way to the top of the mound, and overcoming all odds he threw...A perfect pitch to Roger Clemens. George W. Bush: The right man, the right pitch, the right president.

Are you kidding me?

Unbelievable. And this is the campaign that questions whether Kerry is ready to lead?

Kerry today fought back against the RNC virulent attacks with a barrage of his own, saying: "I'm not going to have my commitment to defend this country questioned by those who refused to serve." Good for you John.

The Kerry campaign has got to come at Bush hard and draw decisive lines in the ground between himself and his opponent. Last night, when Bush wasn't trying to make us sob over 9/11, he re-pushed the conservative line against abortion and gay marriage, and renewed his commitment to tax cuts. Sure I'm against it, but at least he made his stand. Kerry must now use that stance as his fuel to attack Bush and to focus his offense, instead of trying to rally around Republican foundations.

Let them assume their pro-life, homophobia, warmongering stance--You retaliate with a pro-choice, equal rights, homeland protection attack. They are the champs and as such you don't go to sleep in the 7th and hope you have enough points for the win, you get out there and knock their head off. Ask De La Hoya about that, and he'll tell you how that strategy cost him the title with Trindad.

Kerry was lucky that Bushhawk trashed his Vietnam record, now Kerry can take the high ground, but Kerry needs to continue up that hill. Every time I saw an image of 9/11 I thought "Where is Bin Laden?" "Where is Bin Laden?" "Where is Bin Laden?" Kerry needs to hammer the unanswered question home, with authority and with righteous indignation.

Ok, that last "righteous indignation" might have been a bit over the top. That's one of those phrases that seem to be the providence of the Pat Robinsons and Bin Ladens of the world. Yet, I now see why those who hate so much, find words that echo the Bible. I see that when you rage that much the only way you can verbalize it is to use apocalyptic and omnipotent phrases. Last night I raged. I raged at 9/11 and at George W. Bush for using those sacred images as much as he did. Like most of you, seeing that stirs up the harshest and most painful memories we can imagine. It blinds us, and makes us react with our hearts without the tempers of our minds. It's the cheapest marketing tool possible, because while it is on we will buy into anything to take those visions away. It is not the kind of image that convinces--it is the image that coerces. Its a dirty, dirty trick.

And Bush should be ashamed.