A little while ago, while I was having my lunch (chicken and rice soup), that U2 song, "With or without You," came on the radio. I started to think about that day when that song first came out. The radio station hyped it up by saying they would not play it until they were legally allowed to do so. This is a variation of a common radio trick to entice you to listen at a particular time. It was 1987, and I was in college at the time. They announced the song, then played it. Everybody in that dorm who was near a radio heard it. We were all blown away by it. As I was listening to it today I suddenly realized that that song is older now than I was on the day that they first played it on the radio. What the hell happened?

So I was watching ABC's World News as I ate dinner, as I do every night. In the entire 30-minute broadcast there was only one mention and one video clip of George W. Bush. This came 21 minutes and 55 seconds into the show, the last story of the next-to-last segment. He wasn't making any policy announcements or saying anything about the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the state of the economy or what he will do about it, terrorism and national security, or even his biggest wish for making his tax cuts for the rich permanent. He was making a public appearance at a ceremony for the restored flag which flew over Fort McHenry in the War of 1812 that inspired Francis Scott Key to write "The Star-Spangled Banner."

The President of the United States of America, the leader of the free world, no longer stars in his own show. He barely has a speaking role anymore.

Remember how Bill Clinton left eight years ago? You couldn't get his big head off the TV. After Bush took the oath, all the networks stayed with Big Bubba as he rode out to Andrews Air Force Base. Everyone from his administration was waiting in a big hangar for an extravagant going-away ceremony that was not part of any official rite and was privately funded. He inspected troops, but since he was no longer Commander-in-Chief I don't know what the point of that was. Then he made a big speech and got on the plane and flew to New York. The networks all had crews waiting for him there, and he made another speech there too. Somebody else was the Man of the Day, but it seemed like the press only cared about Mr. Bill.

Now, with 61 days left for that man, it looks like he doesn't care either.

Did you hear what he said in his victory speech last night? We're getting a new First Puppy!!! He's going to love the rose garden.

A glorious victory for President-elect Barack Obama!

If you watched the final debate between Barack Obama and John McCain on Thursday, did you happen to notice which one was wearing the stupid flag lapel pin and which one was not? That's right! Obama pandered to the phony patriots while McCain didn't have the star-spangled pledge pin on his uniform. Howcum we heard not a peep out of the right-wingers or the radio talkies calling McCain's patriotism into question like they did all summer with Obama? I smell a double-standard at work.

92 days to go.

Three Shiites were killed by a bomb at a mosque in north Baghdad. Two more US soldiers were killed elsewhere in Iraq. Oh, but Bush, Cheney, and McCain say the surge is working!

94 days to go.

Today's AP count is 4,183, meaning two American soldiers died in Iraq since yesterday. They only say that one was killed by gunfire in western Baghdad, but they don't mention the second one.

Will John McCain insist tonight during the final debate with Barack Obama that the surge is working? Will this be of any consolation to the family of the soldier who died yesterday? The surge didn't work for him.

96 days until Bush is gone.

Every day my local paper runs an AP story reporting the number of US military deaths in Iraq. Today's count was 4,181, which is the same number as yesterday. Nobody died in the Iraq war today. Maybe the surge is starting to work after all.

98 days until Bushie is gone.

Today a female suicide bomber killed 11 and injured 19 in Baqouba, Iraq.

Oh, but the surge is working!! McCain said so. Bush said so.

103 days to go.