Re: Obama's comments in Pennsylvania.

I have never attempted to figure out what makes some people love to hunt, or attend church regularly, or go bowling, or paint or any one of a bunch of things people do for their spare time or even whether people turn to other comforting pursuits when times are tough. But it seems to me that's a valid perspective. I mean, at least in the tradition of my own Southern Baptist background, when times are tough, you're told to seek God more regularly in prayer and come to church. If someone's job is crappy and he wants some joy out of life with a hobby like shooting quail, and looks forward to hunting season, what's wrong with that? (I'm not saying the reverse, that someone hunts BECAUSE he is unhappy but rather as a diversion).

I also am not sure whether the anti-immigration stances of some people who can be quite rabid about it are based on ecomomic policies gone wrong.. or just sheer racism. I do think that for some, who knows for how many, fear of having their previous jobs taken by people coming into this country, drives their anit-immigration stance. And, because this government is encouraging jobs to go OUT of this country, who can't try to empathize with those that are worried about their own livelihood or support of their families? Let's compare that to what McCain said.

From David Sirota- But wait - didn't John McCain say something similar in December to The New Yorker?

Anti-immigrant passion also owes much to the disproportionate influence of a few small states in the nominating process. National polls show that, as an issue, immigration is far behind the Iraq war, terrorism, the economy, and health care as a concern to most Americans; a recent Pew poll shows that, nationally, only six per cent of voters offer immigration as the most important issue facing the country. But in Iowa and South Carolina, two of the three most important early states, it is a top concern for the Republicans who are most likely to vote.

"It's the influx of illegals into places where they've never seen a Hispanic influence before," McCain told me. "You probably see more emotion in Iowa than you do in Arizona on this issue. I was in a town in Iowa, and twenty years ago there were no Hispanics in the town. Then a meatpacking facility was opened up. Now twenty per cent of their population is Hispanic. There were senior citizens there who were--'concerned' is not the word. They see this as an assault on their culture, what they view as an impact on what have been their traditions in Iowa, in the small towns in Iowa. So you get questions like 'Why do I have to punch 1 for English?' 'Why can't they speak English?' It's become larger than just the fact that we need to enforce our borders."

Sure, it's not exactly the same, but it's pretty darn similar. In fact, McCain seems to be saying something far more controversial. While Obama is saying economic hardship breeds anti-immigrant feelings, McCain is saying lots of rural people just hate Hispanics. That may or may not be 1 - but the fact that McCain's campaign is feigning outrage over Obama's truisms when their own candidate has made thematically similar statements strikes me as...what's the word...oh yeah - dishonest.

Compare THAT to this video I took of a woman at a Granbury Texas Town Hall meeting last year that said the answer to immigration is to shoot a number of them.

This one doesn't respect the constitution.

Now, you tell me. Was that economic unhappiness or racism?

But I digress. My point is, there are any number of reasons why someone might do or belong or use what they do. And, unless McCain and Clinton are elitists, TOO, they both need to knock off the criticism of Obama.