This is a critical, critical election. On the one hand, we have in power a murderous pack of thieves and power-hungry corporati who will do anything — and I mean ANYTHING — to cement their power in the long term, if given a chance. On the other hand, we have well over 175 million registered voters, half of whom cannot be bothered to vote in any given election. It is a dangerous, dangerous combination. If the lazy-assed and/or indifferent and/or overfed and/or over-privileged and/or fashionably cynical and/or spoiled, and/or woefully ignorant nonvoting 50% of the electorate could muster just one-tenth the enthusiasm they show for bombing off to the mall on an Saturday afternoon and drag their sorry ungrateful butts to the polls, we would, within a few election cycles — starting with this one — be shed of the blight on Capitol Hill. First, we dump the GOP. Let's face it, they need to go the way of the dinosaurs they are. Maybe the GOP was relevant to someone in the pre-1960s era when bigotry, arrogance, self-aggrandizement at everyone else's expense, worker exploitation and environment rape and pillage were all in a days work were approved sports. But they are about as relevant and beneficial to the human race today as smallpox. The world has increasingly less room and resources to spare on parasitic lifestyles designed to feed the rich off the blood of the poor and what's left of the global environment.

No, the Democrats have not proven themselves hugely better. But they are SOMEWHAT less vile and thus, having allowed things to get to this sad state by not voting for the past 100 years, Americans must start by getting rid of what's worst and settling for now for "somewhat less vile." In the next election cycle, we can focus on voting in reps from a third party ... and from there, who knows. Maybe we can actually reclaim our country.

But first things first. The Bush Reich and all of its minions must GO. And ya know what? That could happen THIS WEEK if enough people cared. THIS WEEK. But if it doesn't, and the final tally reveals that just 50-53% or so of the voting public pulled the lever, pushed the button, punched the chad or scrawled in a write in, then those of you who did none of these things on Tuesday had better not even THINK of writing us to whine about the sad state of affairs.

Lst week I decided to come right out and say what was on many people's minds last week — that Paul Wellstone was murdered by someone connected to the Bush Reich. The response to that article has been amazing, and quite thought-provoking. I thought they made appropriate day-before-election reading ...

      GREAT JOB IN YOUR MOST RECENT COMMENTARY tuesday is a SPIRITUAL day when we get up WEDNESDAY morning we will KNOW if its over or a NEW BEGINNING the most CRUCIAL election day in 233 YEARS PERIOD

  —Tom

      Dear Cheryl,

I know you probably receive too many emails to read them all, but I just wanted to thank you for voicing what were my immediate suspicions ... that the Bush GOP assassinated Paul Wellstone. This is indeed just the latest in along line of attacks on democracy in America, as well as an invitation to the rest of the world to take their hate of the illegitimate American government out on the American people. You have my respect and admiration for having the guts to stand up and speak in a public forum what a lot of us are thinking, that we have allowed an unruly gang of Nazi thugs to seize power. Keep up the good work.

Sincerely,

  — Roy S.

      Hi Cheryl,

Just read your Oct 30 article. I have felt so bad since the crash, I've been having nightmares since. It's an empty, almost hopeless feeling. I agree with you — I hope that all Americans get out to vote on Nov 5 so we can return to the great nation that we are supposed to be !! Good to see that all is going well with you. I'm worried.

  —Keith

      Hi Cheryl,

I read your column on the murder of Paul. I think you are rite.

Keep up the good work.
Thank you for your work for our country.

Regards,

  —Mike

      Ms. Seal,

I just read your article on Wellstone's assassination, and I agree completely with you. I knew the moment I heard that he'd been assassinated, and that this was no accident.

Keep telling the truth.

Sincerely,

  —James S.

      Cheryl,

Thanks for your article on Paul Wellstone. Without pointing a finger, I'm in total agreement on this. Paul Wellstone was murdered. He was in the way of vested interests, of small minds, of those who actually believe we are an evolved species with no room for refinement. Actually, those latter types wouldn't even consider getting that far in their thinking, but I would guess you get my drift. I'm not here to justify my thinking, prove anything, debate anything, convince anyone of anything. I will say this, however. Newt Gingrich will not die in a fiery plane crash, nor will Trent Lott. Arlen Specter will not go down in a hail of bullets, nor will Orin Hatch. Wellstone was murdered, the perps may never be found, the cause never documented. Tracks are covered, and that's why we have terms like "professional killers". A pro doesn't leave tracks any more than a successful bank embezzler gets caught. John, Bobby, Martin were all killed by others than the one person held publicly responsible. Everyone knows that, and yet all are still officially blamed and convicted.

Strange, but so. Say Wellstone was murdered, you're a nut. Know that Wellstone was murdered and you're still sad. Think that he wasn't and you're still deluded. Worse, you're a typical American. Sad AND strange. Cynthia McKinney was recently murdered, yet allowed to live for the present. She was in the way, but an irritant. Wellstone was a major pain. Interesting, to me, the people who have been assassinated, most have one thing in common. Series of things, actually, but that's the problem or limitation with words. Having said that, one thing that strikes me is all had the ability to inspire. It wasn't so much what they themselves, were doing, but what they were capable of doing to others. Look at the people I'm speaking of. Ghandi. The Kennedys, John, Bobby, John. Malcolm X. Sadat. John Lennon (for God's sake!) Martin Luther King. These are the some of the biggies, but this thread runs through all, or most, assassinations. These people had the ability to light a fire, to waken the higher being that resides in all of us (oops, I almost left out the Christ Child!). These people could awaken that which is the biggest danger to control freaks. The danger is people who feel that they don't need any one telling them how to live, what to do, who to be.

These people had the ability to remind people that each and every person was a power unto themselves, and a free soul, a free spirit. That's the danger to the blackened soul, not the person him or herself, but the hope they can impart to others or to remind them they are free and accept no chains of any kind. That's what needs to be taken out if a shit agenda will thrive. Dash the hopes, and then it's easier to submit to the will of the powerful. "What're you gonna do? Can't fight city hall." Oh, really?

I'm 53 years old, and when Bobby was killed I was an 18 year old kid who didn't know or care much about Bobby, but his death really impacted me. My thinking at that time was "Well, they've done it. They've effectively stamped out the last bright light that can remind us who we are and where we need to put our energies." It made me sad then, and it makes me sad now, because Paul Wellstone was as you describe, and now he's gone. Mondale is probably a good man, but not a Paul Wellstone. Mondale is a politician. Wellstone was a great human being who wanted the best for the world. Big difference.

I don't know if you're a fan of Nina Simone. I don't know your tastes or how old you are or if you remember Nina or know Nina, but if not, check her out on the web for background, if you want. Unnecessary, but it'll give you a little insight into her music. Then, go and plunk out 25 bucks (I know, it was painful for me, but I did it. Had I been able to pirate it, I would have done it in a minute) for a double CD she did. It's a compilation of different songs she did, but an absolutely exceptional collection. Some of the songs on that CD were recorded the night or so after Martin Luther King was shot. All these years later, the emotion packed into those cuts bring tears to the eyes just thinking about it. It's that powerful. Anyway, one of her lines of monologue to the audience was "They're killing us, you know. One by one, by one. We can't afford any more losses. Oh, God, we can't afford any more losses". The power and the emotion contained within that is absolutely amazing. As I write this, tears are running down my cheeks. Nina was and still is, a black woman, burned out on America years ago, moved to Europe where she is adored. Militant, and the quote just referred to was speaking about black people, but to me the power lies in the application to all of God's bright lights, and that leaves no one out. No one. If you know of Nina, what I say may be already known, but if you don't, do yourself a favor and get that CD on this tip alone. If you should find you erred in trusting me, trust me one more time that it would make someone a very special Christmas gift. And like the old Peter Paul and Mary song goes "...and if you got no 'ha penny, then God bless you". Just some thoughts.

Thank you again;

stay well and strong,

  —John F.

      Cheryl.

I think they're getting away with murder, as the saying goes. Do you happen to know what state the reporter John Nichols lives in? I want to call him.

  —Nina

      Hello Cheryl,

I just read your article on Paul Wellstone. I find it rather shocking and bold. However, I feel that I believe what you are saying. Has anyone begun an investigation into Paul Wellstone's death? I sincerely hope that someone can give us answers. Its funny, but my foster family (mom, and brother) claim that George Bush is a Christian. Can you tell me what you think? I would very much like to know. I see this thing going on over in Iraq. I don't agree that we need to go to war. They haven't shown us any proof that we need to. What are your feelings about this? I really, thoroughly, enjoyed your article and hope to read more from you soon.

  —Steven J.

No Congressperson spoke out against the Patriot Act or even asked for proof of the need for it ... None have demanded that an investigation be launched into why Cheney, after TWO YEARS still refuses to hand over the task force list. No one has spoken out as to why Ken Lay remains UNINDICTED!!! Meanwhile, reasonable accusations (two extremely similar deaths under remarkably similar circumstances with motives dripping) SHOCK people. HH and I figure that somebody has to keep rattling the bars of the padded cell that has become America.

NOTE: The Bushies proved just what a class act they are by their response to the article: Here is the "load" of poop that was flung our way — if nothing else motivates you to get to the polls, the evidence of just what sort of human being Bush's core supporters are, as evidenced below, should light a fire under your behind!

Exhibit A:

      And an asshole as well. Does that shit sound intelligent to the ghost of a mind in your head as it rattles around in there, just before you spew it out on the keyboard?

  — David Stewart

      You are not only a fool, but a loony fool. Subject says it all.

  —unsigned

      I just read your article on the murder of Wellstone. Thanks for being such a fucking dipshit. You really keep the wacky left wing nuts going. It is people like you that make real americans, conservatives, look oh so good. And they should too, that is what this great country is based on. Taa Taa fuckhead.

  —another unsigned

      Dumb Bitch

  —yet another unsigned

      What a bunch of crap. You're a fucking idiot.

  —unsigned

Last but not least: a creep named Eric Italy sent a viciously altered photo of the Wellstone memorial and a suitably ghoulish note — out of respect to all of us I will not reprint it here.

To the above "brain trusts" I sent the following "form letter":

Your "contribution" will be included in a collection of similar foul-mouthed, infantile, name-calling one- or two-line notes from fellow Bushies — who have collectively managed to prove the point made in the article re: the quality of Bush followers.

      Many of us are struggling hard to demonstrate to our fellow citizens that when it comes to Iraq, our esteemed Commander-in-Chief suffers from paranoid delusions. Th very LAST thing we need is for folks like Cheryl to make statements like this: "Can anyone not totally brainwashed believe this is a coincidence? This was murder, pure and simple." Her evidence? 69% of those polled (in wholly non-scientific poll) smell a "GOP conspiracy;" and the Administration didn't care for Wellstone. THIS is enough to make something "murder, pure and simple?" Yikes.

And the name-calling goes well beyond the bounds of sanity. No, Cheryl, I'm not "totally brainwashed." Far from it. And had you presented one single, minute shred of evidence, I'd be all over this. Had you even said, "you know, this case deserves some attention — whenever a controversial personage is killed, it's worth looking into," I'd nod in agreement. But the sheer absurdity of declaring something "murder pure and simple" puts Ms Seal in the same camp as Messrs. Ashcroft and Bush — psychologically, these three are birds of a feather, each needing to wholly demonize their ideological opponents; I am reminded reading this rant of Bush's endless, dreary references to "the Evil Ones." To state outright that "this was murder" without offering ANY evidence only serves to discredit the Left — this is exactly the kind of raving that the Right would dearly love to pick up and plaster all over the place. The presumption of innocence applies to our enemies as well as our friends, Cheryl. The need to provide SOME evidence to support hypotheses like these applies to each one of us just as it does to Mr Bush.

I'm truly disgusted. With friends like these ...

  —Michael H.

      Cheryl —

How do your feelings about Wellstone's "murder" differ from conservatives accusations that Hillary murdered Vince Foster. I don't feel you are doing anyone a service by rallying the troops based on feelings and conjecture. You are just giving conservatives another unsupported theory to point their fingers at and accuse liberals of knee-jerk reactionary politics Some evidence might change my mind but feelings are just that, and can be rational or irrational.

Wellstone will be missed.

  —Sander D.

      For Michael H. and Sander D. and anyone else alarmed by Cheryl's daily diatribe on Wednesday: Cheryl is a columnist! not a prosecutor. It's a diatribe! not an indictment. She's got an opinion column where she offers her opinion! An opinion is not objective! journalism and it's not supposed to be.

I read Cheryl's daily diatribes because her opinions are very much worth reading, and her column Wednesday was no exception.

"I could feel it in my bones, in my heart, and in my soul that he was murdered." These are words of anger and outrage and, yes, suspicion at One Hell Of A Coincidence. It's a feeling a lot of us have shared, but not written so eloquently.

  —Annie

Another problem I see is that people seem to forget the difference between an opinion column and hard news ... when I write under the banner of a Diatribe, I am not pretending to be a reporter. I am a columnist ... but the blur between the genres is understandable because of the way the corporate media has turned handled news "as entertainment" — 48 Hours, et al. and even the evening news slots are now filled with pharmaceutical infomercials pretending to be "medical news," free campaign ads for the GOP pretending to be "political news," and press releases dictated by Condi Rice and Rumsfeld pretending to be "international news." So, is it any wonder an angry accusation made under the prominent heading "Diatribe" is confused with "news?"

Anyhow, someone has to rattle the bars of the padded cage our Congressional leaders seem to have retreated into. And, in any case, if the GOP can accuse Democrats of every unsolved crime ever committed, from Chandra Levy to Vince Foster on much less evidence ... and investigate them and ruminate over them for months — even years — why is everyone so shocked when a liberal makes a similar, and better founded accusation? This disparity proves that Democrats have allowed themselves to be turned into second class citizens with second-hand rights. "Please sir ... I want some more!" (remember poor starving little Oliver Twist, "daring" to ask for just a bit more porridge from the big fat mean poorhouse overseer? — that's how I see the wimpiest of the Congressional Dems these days.).

Anyway, thanks for the feedback ... Let's pray that any FAA investigation is completely uninfluenced by certain parties in the White House.

Best

      Well said — not to mention brave. I think you might want to change the first "murder" in your first sentence, it's a little confusing. You could say "The moment I heard the news that ...Wellstone had died in a plane crash, I could feel it in my bones...that he had been murdered," or something like that. The moment I heard the news that the unabashedly liberal, gloriously conscientious Senator from Minnesota Paul Wellstone was murdered, I could feel it in my bones, in my heart, and in my soul that he had been murdered.

Thanks again for posting that.

      After reading your article concerning Mr. Wellstone's death, I cannot but help feel sorry for you. Are most Democrats so void of morals that they think the rest of the nation's population is also? Do you have any PROOF of your raving claims??? NO! Can you prove the irrational Democrats, in fear of losing this seat in the Senate, did not have him killed? NO! But that makes as much or more sense than your article does. I CAN BELIEVE THE DEMOCRATS WOULD DO IT. They are that desperate.

      Cheryl,

I've never read a more paranoid diatribe in my entire life. After reading it, one might think that a person like myself would be mad, but I was saddened. I was saddened that there are people in the world like yourself who must live such frightened, insecure lives, so wrapped up in political ideology that you would actually espouse the things you did. I genuinely feel badly for you, and I really hope that you seek some professional help. I don't mean this to be insulting, I genuinely think you need serious psychiatric attention because you are clearly not mentally healthy. You are by all appearances another victim of the disinformation and paranoid delusions perpetrated by the more ideological, less sane people on the Left of the political spectrum. Your theory, not withstanding the "feeling in your bones", is complete and total hogwash, unfit for any mentally well person to entertain for even a second. Did you even read the things you typed? I mean, you really covered it all. You hit on every cliché the left espouses — Nazis, oil, rich people, tax cuts, feelings and compassion — I mean I'm really blown away. It's shocking to think that people like yourself actually exist. The sad truth is that Paul was not a true hero. He was a man who had deeply held, totally incorrect, convictions. I applaud him for who he was, but in the end he and those like him are simply wrong. His death was also sad, but what is far sadder is the depths far Left loonies like yourself will sink to. Screeds like yours will only further reinforce in the minds of moderate and independent voters that liberal Democrats are fruit cakes who do not have a grasp on reality. Paul died a tragic, accidental death. The idea that he stood in the way of some GOP agenda is so laughable that I would be laughing if it weren't for the sad fact that you really believe it. He was a lone dissenter over and over again on a wide variety of issues. No bill ever hinged on his vote. The "sympathy factor" that his death has created is an obvious negative for his opponent Norm Coleman, and everyone knew it — knew it before Mel tragically died. Killing an opponent simply isn't wise politics, but more than that it doesn't even make sense in any shape form or fashion. Simply put — no coherent reason can be formulated to posit why the GOP would kill a political opponent. You certainly, miserably failed to do so. Cheryl, I'll say it again — seek help. I'm not kidding you. You're a sick woman, and you need a doctor. My prayers will be with you dear.