A few weeks ago, Kos made a bit of a stink about some stances taken by Barack Obama that didn't sit well with him. As a result, he posted something of a diatribe about Obama not earning his donation and claimed he wouldn't donate $2,300 for the primary (and the subsequent $2,300 for the general election) until Obama earned it.

Time is running out. Primary donations are due. The deadline is September 1st, I believe. It seems petulant, self-centered, childish and downright foolish to withhold financial support from Obama at this late date if you can afford to give.

And something tells me...after November and into winter and then on into spring...if things go the way they should...he'll have only a slight head start on a whole new generation of Obama-babies.

It's the kind of day in washington, dc that reminds one that summer is here and it's going to be a long one. It's the kind of soupy, airless afternoon that makes you take the day for granted, knowing all too well the heat and humidity of this Sunday afternoon will be here next week and the week after that...so stay inside, what's the hurry, checking the calendar you see that summer hasn't officially begun.

So sitting here sweating -- the a/c broken -- the world cup between matches and the dog passed out, giving in to the heat -- a Washington Post story catches my eye.

It's about Barack Obama and whether he should run for president in 2008. Some say yes, others no. Some say he's new and fresh and just what a party filled with been there-done that figures needs. All typical talk. All the stuff we've heard and debated back and forth.

But then this line -- two sentences about three quarters of the way through the story leapt off the page. It was about an airplane and the young senator and a cloudy afternoon. there was a mention of Paul Wellstone and fluke of fate. Planes crash.

And the thought occurred...who were the most divisive potential nominees with a legit shot of winning the nomination? And where does Hillary rank among them?

Could we write her enough letters and emails pleading with her not to run? Could that change her mind? No. Could we do the same with letters to-the-editor and continue to protest at her public appearance? Could that dissuade her? Eventually...with more polls like those out of Iowa showing her losing to Edwards...hopefully. And a growing chorus of reasons why not to a Hillary campaign that forces her to do us all a favor and take a pass.

But I don't want to spend $265/year to get a subscription to this Hill-rag. So if anyone has access to this "Beltway" op-ed fawning over Hillary -- calling her acceptance of Rupert Murdoch's money a "bell-whether" and referring to any perceived problems she might have with "the left" as "elite buzz" -- please post it. Share it. Repsond to it. Does she read DailyKos? Does she know it exists? Is she not part of the "elite" herself?

Maybe this has been raised before and forgive me if it seems a familiar question...but in light of ... everything ... since 9/11 and especially the release of the movie United 93 and overhearing more than a few people muttering things like "I'm so sick of hearing about Katrina people" -- the thought occurred:

What if the 2 airplanes that were flown into the WTC missed?

What if instead the 2 airplanes hit two public housing towers and the same number of people died, and hung from windows, and jumped and America watched as the buildings collapsed? [Assume for the sake of this hypothetical that  the airplanes themselves were flights bound for the Dominican Republic (like the one that crashed in NYC in November, 2001) and those on board were mostly Dominicans]

Would the impact have been the same?