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George Soros: This is the most important election of my lifetime. I have never been heavily involved in partisan politics but these are not normal times. President Bush is endangering our safety, hurting our vital interests and undermining American values. That is why I am sending you this message. I have been demonized by the Bush campaign but I hope you will give me a hearing. Why We Must Not Re-elect President Bush

Eye on Global Politics, Pickup Lines & Party Lines: Election Ruckus and The Contender
Mark Latham has come from nowhere to give Australia's opposition Labor Party a real chance of winning the country's general election on October 9th. He has rattled John Howard, the prime minister who is seeking a fourth term for his conservative coalition government. He has made Australians listen to Labor for the first time in more than eight years. He is also asking them to take a risk by trusting their booming economy to someone who many feel they still do not know.
• From The Economist print edition Mark Latham takes the election down to the wire
• · Whenever I talk to my wife about it, we lower our voices. The subject is not something I discuss with many people Is Everyone Batty Out There, or What? It's big hugs, near-kisses and toolboxes
• · · David Brooks' deconstrction theory could be be easily applied to the Australia's political landscape (Latham has the heart, Howard has the head): In weak moments, I think the best ticket for this country would be Bush-Kerry. The two men balance each other out so well. Kerry can't make a decision; Bush makes them too quickly. Kerry changes his mind by the month; Bush almost never changes his mind.Sense and Sensibility ; Jeff Jarvis: Today's column is a superb analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of both candidates for President and says much better than I did why this is such a troubling choice; Avedon Carol; Chris Nolan; Andrew Sullivan; Barbara O'Brien.
• · · · Rebecca Solnit: Jailbirds I Have Loved… Or No You Can't Have My Rights. I'm Still Using Them - Walden Pond Civil disobedience reflected in Cold River of Shadows ; A season of dirty tricks LAPTOPGATE? Three Laptops stolen from Bush campaign office
• · · · · David Sirota: There is nothing quite as hypocritical as a politician preaching the virtues of democracy while doing everything he can to destroy it. But as Election Day approaches, that is exactly what is happening You Call This a Democracy? ; [Walter Williams: Deep within, these (three branches of government -- Congress, the presidency and the judiciary) seemingly indestructible pillars of the Constitution are threatened by structural flaws. Nowhere is the threat greater than in the case of the system of checks and balances that are the key means the branches use to maintain institutional power. No Balance in Branches of Government]
• · · · · · Ira Chernus: The Story Behind the Debate ... Bush is most adept at playing both the innocent one and the savior of the innocent, tapping into that ancient image of America as a place of pure innocence a Garden of Eden, where everyone is Adam or Eve ; [Greg Palast: Debate: Mr. Tall and Mr. Small ; Naomi Klein: You Can't Bomb Beliefs ; Joyce Marcel reports about struggling-to-keep-our-heads-above-water people; Yoshi Tsurumi who advised: In my class he declared that 'people are poor because they are lazy’ Sermon From A Different, Far Better, Mount, Bush